ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Common Land (SSSIs)

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what areas of common land classified as sites of special scientific interest in England are in unfavourable condition; and what assessment she has made of the need for changes to regulations to ensure favourable condition of such common land is achieved.

Ben Bradshaw: In July 2002, our Common Land Policy Statement set out proposals for addressing the main barriers to the sustainable management of common land. One of our key aims is to enable commoners to manage their own activities more effectively. This in turn will help contribute to the achievement of a number of biodiversity objectives, including the SSSI PSA target.
	Following further public consultation in 2003, we have been working up more detailed legislative proposals. We remain committed to introducing legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows.
	The areas of common land SSSIs in favourable or unfavourable condition are given in the table and broken down according to English Nature area team.
	
		Area of common land with Sites of Special Scientific Interest -- ha
		
			 English Nature area team Favourable or recovering condition Unfavourable condition Total 
		
		
			 Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire 146 189 335 
			 Cheshire to Lancashire 1,523 906 2,429 
			 Cornwall and Isles Of Scilly 2,659 1,664 4,323 
			 Cumbria 26,100 22,416 48,516 
			 Devon 14,893 9,935 24,828 
			 Dorset 514 413 927 
			 EMR—Eastern 95 51 146 
			 EMR—Peak District and Derbyshire 179 1,050 1,229 
			 Essex, Hertfordshire and London 377 261 638 
			 Hampshire and Isle of Wight 1,258 758 2,016 
			 Herefordshire and Worcestershire 655 787 1,442 
			 Humber to Pennines 1,936 8,959 10,895 
			 Kent 141 22 163 
			 Norfolk 2,443 90 2,533 
			 North and East Yorkshire 24,255 21,170 45,425 
			 North Mercia 2,743 1,521 4,264 
			 Northumbria 8,651 20,540 29,191 
			 Somerset and Gloucestershire 4,753 3,789 8,542 
			 Suffolk 841 185 1,026 
			 Sussex and Surrey 6,980 2,009 8,989 
			 Thames and Chilterns 1,319 69 1,388 
			 Wiltshire 405 9 414 
			 Grand Total 102,866 96,793 199,659

Data Protection

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what procedures are in place (a) to check the criminal records of civil servants in her Department and agencies responsible to her Department who have access to computer databases containing confidential information on the public and (b) to ensure that there can be no improper use of computer databases containing confidential information on the public; and if she will make a statement.

Alun Michael: A basic character check is carried out on all staff before they are allowed unsupervised access to Defra's IT systems. It is also a departmental requirement that staff must declare criminal convictions. Criminal records checks are carried out in cases where staff dealing with particularly sensitive material require formal vetting in line with central Government guidelines. Defra's IT security policy is designed (a) to protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of computer systems and information to a level that meets business needs and (b) to ensure that accounting and audit processes exist. This is achieved by: ensuring all processes and actions are authorised; all authorised users can be identified and monitored; and all systems and associated personnel perform in a consistent manner. The security policy is available to all staff on our internal intranet and regular reminders are issued.

Extensification Payment Scheme

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much has been paid out under the Extensification Payment Scheme in each county in England in 2003–04; and if she will make a statement.

Alun Michael: The amount paid out under the Extensification Premium Scheme in each county in England for the 2003 scheme year (1 January 2003–31 December 2003) and paid between 1 April 2004 and 31 October 2004 are set out in the following table. We are currently unable to provide figures for 2004 as the scheme year does not end until 31 December 2004 and payments will not commence until 1 April 2005.
	
		
			 County Gross amount paid £ million 
		
		
			 Bedfordshire 181,442 
			 Berkshire 280,284 
			 Buckinghamshire 1,336,191 
			 Cleveland 111,457 
			 Cambridgeshire 406,007 
			 Cheshire 522,962 
			 Cornwall 3,542,585 
			 Cumbria 5,060,984 
			 Derbyshire 1,489,980 
			 Devon 7,275,747 
			 Dorset 988,321 
			 Durham 1,653,048 
			 Essex 476,922 
			 Gloucestershire 1,408,049 
			 Hampshire 917,587 
			 Isle of Wight 186,395 
			 Hereford & Worcester 1,985,153 
			 Hertfordshire 275,355 
			 Kent 868,356 
			 Lancashire 1,385,828 
			 Leicestershire 1,026,848 
			 Lincolnshire 1,177,116 
			 Merseyside 30,849 
			 Greater London 8,645 
			 Greater London 18,964 
			 Norfolk 1,139,392 
			 Northamptonshire 1,168,500 
			 Tyne and Wear 112,132 
			 Northumberland 4,629,514 
			 Nottinghamshire 432,303 
			 Oxfordshire 1,012,987 
			 Avon 733,456 
			 Shropshire 2,138,763 
			 Somerset 2,490,115 
			 Staffordshire 1,041,743 
			 Suffolk 492,629 
			 Scilly Isles 2,209 
			 Surrey 390,225 
			 East Sussex 932,700 
			 West Sussex 670,336 
			 Warwickshire 667,962 
			 Greater Manchester 209,490 
			 Wiltshire 1,570,796 
			 West Midlands 79,499 
			 South Yorkshire 417,433 
			 North Yorkshire 4,100,230 
			 West Yorkshire 771,885 
			 North Yorkshire 143,371 
			 Humberside 589,804 
			 Total 58,552,549

Heathrow

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what work her Department has undertaken to update the 1982 Social Survey on the impact of night flights around Heathrow;
	(2)  what plans her Department has to conduct a social survey of the impact of night flights around Heathrow.

Charlotte Atkins: I have been asked to reply.
	In December 2000, a report funded by the then DETR was published on Perceptions of Aircraft Noise, Sleep and Health (Diamond et al, http://www.socstats.soton.ac.uk/research/noisereport.doc). This study included surveys in the vicinity of Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, East Midlands, and Coventry airports. A broader study of Attitudes to Noise from Aircraft Sources in England, which covers both night and daytime noise, is currently being undertaken on the Department's behalf, the lead contractor being The MVA Consultancy.
	Findings from further social research as well as objective studies of sleep disturbance were summarised in the NATS/DORA (now CAA/ERCD) R and D Report 9964, Adverse effects of night-time aircraft noise, published in March 2000.
	In addition to these social survey studies, the Department has consulted regularly on the night restrictions at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted. The Stage 1 consultation on restrictions from 30 October 2005 was published in July and the consultation period closed on 29 October.

Noise

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action has been taken by the Government to achieve the targets recommended by the WHO Guidelines for Community Noise; and in which year she expects to attain the targets recommended in the Guidelines.

Charlotte Atkins: I have been asked to reply 
	as the WHO guidelines bear predominantly on transport noise sources. The Government is a signatory to the WHO Charter on Transport, the Environment and Health, and is thereby committed to take account of the WHO Guidelines.
	The noise levels cited in the WHO Guidelines mark the approximate onset of various annoyance and disturbance effects. As such, they are not limits but information to which the Government will have regard when developing policy and seeking to strike the balance between the three pillars of sustainable development. It is not feasible, and will not become practicable in the foreseeable future, to eliminate all such effects, either in the UK or in other signatory States.
	The relevance of the guidelines in the context of night noise from aircraft was discussed further in the Department's recent Stage 1 consultation on the night restrictions at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted, paragraphs 3.8–3.13.

Off-road Motor Cycles

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what examples of best practice are available to (a) local authorities and (b) police authorities on (i) making provision for off-road motorcycles and (ii) tackling irresponsible off-road motorcycling.

Alun Michael: The departmental publication, "Making the Best of Byways", provides advice and practical examples to local authorities on managing mechanically propelled vehicles on byways and includes guidance on identifying suitable off-road sites. The Department is currently working on a comprehensive revision to the document.
	We are preparing new enforcement guidance for both police authorities and local authorities to help them deal with inappropriate and illegal use of motor vehicles off road. The guidance will set out the extensive statutory powers already available to deal with misuse and will draw on existing best practice examples of police and local authorities working in successful partnerships.
	Copies of "Making the Best of Byways" have been placed in the House Library. The revised document and new enforcement guidance will be available next year.

Sea Fishing (Licences)

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on whether anglers should be required to hold licences for the right to fish at sea.

Ben Bradshaw: The Review of Marine Fisheries and Environmental Enforcement, which was published in July, recommends that, in return for improvements which would benefit sea anglers, a licensing scheme for them be considered. The consultation period on the review ended on 29 September. My officials are now evaluating the replies, and I have not yet made any decisions.

Sharpness Dock Basin

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the condition of Sharpness Dock Basin, with particular reference to the views expressed by the Gloucester Harbour Trustees.

Alun Michael: As statutory harbour authority, British Waterways is fully aware of the Gloucester Harbour Trustees' concern about the condition of Sharpness Docks. It has identified improvement works for the docks of some £4–5 million over the next four to five years. It is considering the phasing of this work as part of its asset management programme.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Parliamentary Security Co-ordinator

Marion Roe: To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission pursuant to his Answer of 19 October 2004, Official Report, column 566W, if he will make a further statement on the appointment of a Parliamentary Security Co-ordinator.

Archy Kirkwood: I can confirm that the House of Lords authorities have agreed to the establishment of a Parliamentary Security Co-ordinator. An appointment will be made as soon as practicable, initially on secondment. The Parliamentary Security Co-ordinator would be expected, among other responsibilities, to oversee the project of implementing new security measures arising from the joint review, to improve co-ordination of security matters between the two Houses and advise on issues which need to be dealt with across the Estate as a whole, and to provide a focus for liaison with the Metropolitan police and security service. The Parliamentary Security Co-ordinator would be accountable for his/her performance to Mr. Speaker in the Commons and the Lord Chairman of Committees in the Lords, and would come under the Chief Executives of the two Houses for day-to-day management purposes, working with Black Rod and the Serjeant at Arms, who would continue to hold executive responsibility, to ensure the security of their respective Houses.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Written Questions

Greg Knight: To ask the Leader of the House if he will bring forward proposals to allow the tabling of written questions during periods when the House is in recess for answer on a named day during the recess.

Peter Hain: I have no plans to do so.

PRIME MINISTER

Carbon Emissions

Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister what role he played in the decision announced by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs that the UK should apply to the EU for an increase in permissible carbon emissions under the EU Emissions Trading Schemes.

Tony Blair: This was a collective decision in accordance with the Ministerial Code.

Congressional Gold Medal

Derek Conway: To ask the Prime Minister when he intends to collect his congressional gold medal; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Lewes (Mr. Baker) on 18 May 2004, Official Report, column 878W.

Iraq

Paul Marsden: To ask the Prime Minister to what proportion of next of kin of armed forces personnel killed in Iraq he has written condolence letters.

Tony Blair: During the Iraq conflict, the policy on official governmental letters of condolence was reviewed in consultation with single Service Chiefs of Staff. I announced my intention to write to the next of kin of all those Service personnel who were killed in action on operations.

Iraq

Paul Marsden: To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he held with President Bush on the timing of war with Iraq during his visit to the US commencing on 7 September 2002.

Tony Blair: I regularly have discussions on a wide range of issues with President Bush including on Iraq. As with previous Administrations, it is not the practice of this Government to make public details of discussions with foreign governments.

Iraq

Keith Vaz: To ask the Prime Minister when he last held discussions with the UN Secretary-General regarding Iraq.

Tony Blair: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Faversham and Mid Kent (Hugh Robertson) and my hon. Friend the Member for Blaenau Gwent (Llew Smith) on 25 October 2004, Official Report, column 1025W.

Iraq

Glenda Jackson: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 27 October 2004, Official Report, column 1257W, on Iraq, when he was first informed by British military commanders of the request they had received from the US military for the re-deployment of British troops.

Tony Blair: I refer my hon. Friend to the statement made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence (Mr. Hoon) on 18 October 2004, Official Report, column 625–26.

Iraq

Glenda Jackson: To ask the Prime Minister when he last discussed with Coalition allies ways of minimising civilian casualties in the course of military operations in Iraq.

Tony Blair: I refer my hon. Friend to the answers I gave the hon. Member for Newry and Armagh (Mr. Mallon) and my hon. Friend the Member for Halifax (Mrs. Mahon) at Prime Minister's Questions on 3 November 2004, Official Report, columns 301 and 305–06.

President Bush

Keith Vaz: To ask the Prime Minister when he last held discussions with President Bush.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to my statement of 3 November 2004 which is available on the No. 10 website.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Barker Review

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to revise chapter 9 of the regional planning guidance in light of the Barker review; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Hill: The Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister, has only recently published in July this year a revised Chapter 9 of Regional Planning Guidance for the South-East (RPG9). The South East England Regional Assembly is currently in the process of reviewing the spatial strategy set out in RPG9 with a view to submitting a draft Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS) for the South-East to the Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister, in the summer of 2005. The Government have already highlighted to the Assembly the expectation that in their review the Assembly takes into account key messages emerging from the Barker review.

Casinos

Jim Cousins: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of the responses to the consultation on a separate use class order for casinos from each of the planning authorities in Tyne and Wear.

Keith Hill: After the second report of the Joint Scrutiny Committee, my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister undertook to review the possibility of a change to the classification of casinos and invited comments by the end of October. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister did not receive any comments from planning authorities in Tyne and Wear.

Civil Servants

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average length of continuous service for civil servants within the Department is.

Phil Hope: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton West (Ruth Kelly) on 3 November 2004, Official Report, column 268W. The only part of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister which are not MANDATE reliant are the Fire Service College where the average length of service is 6.5 years and the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre where it is 5.38 years.

Decent Homes Standard

Ken Purchase: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to review the funding under the decent homes standard for local authorities whose tenants choose to remain owned and managed by the local authority.

Keith Hill: The Government is not looking at any other options for delivering additional resources beyond the existing three options. The existing options of Arms Length Management Organisations (ALMO), Private Finance Initiatives (PFI) and transfer are proving highly successful and there is no need to create alternative options. There is not and will not be a 'fourth option' for additional funds, and the Deputy Prime Minister has recently written to all leaders of councils of stock owning local authorities to make this clear.
	However, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is always looking at ways of improving how housing finance works, for example, this year has seen greater freedoms introduced by prudential borrowing and increased Management and Maintenance allowances above inflation.

Departmental IT

Brian White: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what percentage of the Department's (a) implemented and (b) planned computer systems use open source software; and what plans are in place to raise this level.

Phil Hope: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not have statistics on the use of open source software, but to date it is very limited. We follow established Government policy, which is to consider open source software options alongside proprietary ones in IT procurements on a level playing field basis, and award contracts on a value for money, case-by-case basis. The policy can be viewed at www.govtalk.gov.uk.

Fire Control Centre (South-West)

Candy Atherton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what decisions he has taken in relation to a regional fire control centre for the South West.

Nick Raynsford: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is currently running a competitive procurement for fire and rescue regional control centres under the EU Restricted Services Directive, (OJEU Notice 2004/S 78–066658). Submitted sites have been evaluated against criteria such as accessibility (to both people and services), demographics, vulnerability to threats such as flooding, and suitability for development. A shortlist of three bidders has been selected for the South West region and tenders invited from them. The final decisions on locations are expected early next year.
	During the procurement process we are unable to release any information on the tenderers and their proposals to anyone who is not directly involved in the process.

Government Offices for the Regions

Eric Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what pieces of primary legislation Government Offices for the regions are able to use to implement their work.

Phil Hope: The Government Offices for the Regions (GOs) carry out activities on behalf of 10 Government Departments. A list of all the primary legislation relied upon by those Departments in carrying out their functions through the GOs is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Government Offices for the Regions

Eric Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the responsibilities of the Government Offices for the Regions (a) were in 1997 and (b) are now.

Phil Hope: In 1997 the responsibilities of the Government Offices for the Regions (GOs) included work for four Government Departments: Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Education and Employment, Department of the Environment, and Department of Transport.
	Since 1997, the GOs have been given more responsibilities and they now carry out work on behalf of 10 Government Departments. Their current responsibilities are set out in the Regional Co-ordination Unit and Government Office Network Corporate Plan 2004–05. A copy of this has been available in the Library of the House.

Government Offices for the Regions

Eric Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what additional regulatory powers Government Offices for the Regions have gained since 1997.

Phil Hope: The Government Offices for the Regions (GOs) are part of the central Government Departments for whom they carry out activities but are based in the regions. A regulatory impact assessment is required for powers which impact on business, charities or the voluntary sector (and from April 2004 a public sector impact test), and on which Departments rely in carrying out their functions through the GOs. A list of those powers is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

HMOs

Jon Trickett: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate the 1996 English House Condition Survey made of the (a) number and (b) proportion of houses in multiple occupation that have three or more storeys.

Keith Hill: None. A detailed analysis of the 1996 survey data could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.

HMOs

Jon Trickett: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to publish an analysis of houses in multiple occupation in the private rented sector from the information contained in the 2001 English House Condition Survey.

Keith Hill: The most robust figures that can be provided are published in Table 2.2 on page 33 of the English House Condition Survey 2001 main report, a copy of which is tabled as follows. The size of the survey sample of houses in multiple occupation precludes any detailed breakdown by tenure.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister expects that the majority of bedsits and shared houses will be in the private rented sector, and households with lodgers will be owner-occupied. The survey indicates that in the order of 45 per cent. of self-contained converted flats are private rented.
	
		Table 2.2: Dwellings, buildings, accommodation units, households and people in main HMO categories, 2001
		
			  Shared house/flat Household with lodger Bedsits 
			  Thousand Percentage Thousand Percentage Thousand Percentage 
		
		
			 Number of dwellings 293 26.7 91 8.3 82 7.5 
			 Number of buildings 293 45.9 91 14.3 82 12.9 
			 Number of accommodation units 293 20.4 91 6.4 423 29.4 
			 Number of households 293 22.1 91 6.9 36 27.4 
			 Number of people 965 36.7 272 10.3 418 15.9 
		
	
	
		
			  Converted flat All main HMOs 
			  Thousand Percentage Thousand Percentage 
		
		
			 Number of dwellings 631 57.5 1,098 100 
			 Number of buildings 171 26.9 638 100 
			 Number of  accommodation units 631 43.9 1,438 100 
			 Number of households 579 43.7 1,327 100 
			 Number of people 974 37.0 2,629 100

Planning

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what the average cost to a planning department of processing a planning application was in each of the last three years; and what the average costs were for applications processed by Birmingham city council;
	(2)  how many planning applications were resubmitted (a) to planning departments in England and (b) to Birmingham city council planning department in each of the last three years;
	(3)  what the average number of hours needed by planning officers to process a planning application was (a) in England and (b) in Birmingham city council in each of the last three years;
	(4)  what percentage of planning applications that were resubmitted were from (a) private individuals and (b) property developers in each of the last three years;
	(5)  what the average fee charged by planning departments to process a planning application was to (a) private individuals and (b) property developers in each of the last three years.

Keith Hill: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Planning

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average fee charged for submitting a planning application was (a) in England and (b) in Birmingham city council in each of the last three years.

Keith Hill: The information requested is tabled as follows.
	
		
			  Fees(1) (£ million) Applications(2) (thousand) Average(3) (£) 
		
		
			 England
			 2001–02 142 582 240 
			 2002–03 171 635 270 
			 2003–04 185 675 270 
			 
			 Birmingham
			 2001–02 1.8 6.2 280 
			 2002–03 2.3 6.8 340 
			 2003–04 2.4 7.9 310 
		
	
	(1) Reported receipts grossed for non-reporting councils; excluding fees for 'county matters' applications. Neither listed building consents nor conservation area consents attract fees.
	(2) Applications for planning permission, grossed for non-reporting councils. Statistics on total applications received are only collected, so consequently include listed building consents and conservation area consents.
	(3) Fees per application.
	Note:
	'County matters' applications and fees, covering mainly waste disposal and mineral extraction, have been excluded. These number only around 2,000 decisions annually for England as a whole.

Post Office

Clive Efford: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the impact of the closure of sub-post offices on regeneration strategies in neighbourhood renewal areas.

Phil Hope: The June 2000 Performance and Innovation Unit report on modernising the Post Office network proposed a special fund be established to help sustain and improve post offices in deprived urban areas, in recognition of their important contribution to their communities. The £15 million Deprived Urban Post Office Fund was subsequently set up to support post offices at risk of closure in the most deprived areas.

Post Office

Clive Efford: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what discussions his Department has had with the Department of Trade and Industry on the impact of closure of sub-post offices in neighbourhood renewal areas.

Phil Hope: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has worked closely involved with the Department of Trade and Industry in setting up the £15 million Deprived Urban Post Office Fund which supports sub-post offices at risk of closure in the most deprived areas.

Regional Assemblies

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the implementation of the recommendations contained in the Barker report on housing supply.

Keith Hill: Kate Barker's proposals build on the approach adopted in the Communities Plan, launched by the Deputy Prime Minister in February 2003. Her analysis has reinforced the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's case and strategy for more growth. In particular, in their initial response to her report, my right hon. Friends the Deputy Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the Exchequer accepted Kate Barker's central recommendation that there should be a step change in housing supply. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister intends to set a national market affordability goal as part of a package of measures to achieve this, by the end of 2005.
	In addressing the specific suggestions in her report the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will adopt the same principles as set out in the Communities Plan. We want to create sustainable communities; thriving and vibrant places where people want to live and work, and which will stand the test of time. We retain a firm commitment to preserving the Green Belt and using higher densities to minimise the land take from new development. In the recent Spending Review, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer allocated funds which, with additional Private Finance Initiative (PFI) funding, aim to provide an extra 10,000 new homes for social let annually. The Spending Review also provides the resources that will help deliver the 200,000 new homes identified in the Sustainable Communities Plan in Thames Gateway and the other growth areas by 2016 and go further by responding to new proposals for growth.
	New housing must be supported by public services (schools, hospitals, transport, water and power supply) as they grow. Departments are working together to ensure this. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has made a start through the spending review in creating a Community Infrastructure Fund. An extra £50 million in 2006–07 and £150 million in 2007–08 will be available to finance transport projects needed to sustain housing growth.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is currently consulting on proposals to strengthen regional integration by bringing together regional planning bodies and regional housing boards. This will help to ensure that regional housing strategies are better integrated with Regional Spatial Strategies in line with other regional strategies such as the regional economic strategy. This consultation also covers the arrangements to be put in place to provide the new regional bodies with independent advice on housing need and market assessments and on how to interpret the Government's affordability goal at regional level.
	The Barker Review also made a number of recommendations for changes to the way in which land is allocated and released for housing development. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will consult widely with key interests on specific proposals made by Barker and intend to produce a draft consultation on revisions to Planning Policy Guidance 3—Housing, during 2005.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is also committed to considering the Barker Review's proposals for the introduction of a Planning Gain Supplement to capture increase in land values arising from development for the provision of infrastructure, and to come to a decision by the end of 2005.
	Government alone will not be able to deliver the growth required. House builders and developers must respond. Kate Barker laid down specific challenges to the house building industry to improve productivity, design and customer satisfaction. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister looks forward to working with the industry to address these issues and achieve the extra growth required.

Regional Assemblies

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the likely impact of net immigration on housing demand in England over the next 20 years.

Keith Hill: The Government estimates that net immigration contributes only a minority of household growth. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has prepared interim estimates of household growth over the period to 2031, using the 2002 Government Actuary's Department figures. These predict that household growth will average 189,000 between 2001 and 2021. We estimate that around one third—or around 60,000—households per year will be directly due to net immigration between 2001 and 2021. Fully updated 2003-based household projections will be published next year. The Government takes the impact of migration on our housing stock seriously and has recently amended social housing allocations policy following the enlargement of the European Union.

Regional Assemblies

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will estimate the number of houses to be demolished in each of the Pathfinder areas of England.

Keith Hill: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Pendle (Mr. Prentice) on 28 October 2004, Official Report, columns 1321–22W.

Students

Harold Best: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on the problems associated with the (a) geographical concentration and (b) accommodation of higher education students.

Keith Hill: Earlier this year I discussed these issues at a meeting with my right. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Alan Johnson) at which universities UK (UUK) and the local government association (LGA) were present. As a result the Department for Education and Skills agreed to help fund a joint project between UUK and the LGA to establish some good practice in the provision of student accommodation in the community.
	The study will look at existing schemes with the aim of identifying best practice in managing student accommodation. A specification for the project has now been agreed and UUK are currently in the process of seeking suitable parties to undertake the research. The aim is to have completed the research and to have produced a good practice guide by Spring 2005.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

BHG Group

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps her Department has taken to investigate the activities of Better Health Global Ltd. and the BHG group of companies; and if she will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 2 November 2004
	Winding-up orders have been made against three companies, part of the BHG group of companies; Betterhealth Global Ltd., Betterhealth International Ltd. and Self-Pay (International) Ltd. The winding-up orders were obtained on 23 June 2004 on the petition of companies' bankers.
	The official receivers' investigation into the failure of the companies in liquidation is on-going.
	With respect to other companies in the Betterhealth Global group, my Department does not comment on the affairs of live companies that are not the subject to insolvency proceedings.

BHG Group

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate her Department has made of the total losses incurred by investors and creditors as a result of the liquidation of Better Health Global Ltd. (BHG); what estimate has been made of the cost to the Department of grants to companies used to fund BHG; and if she will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 2 November 2004
	The estimated deficiency of assets over liabilities in the liquidation of Betterhealth Global Ltd. is £346,840.
	The official receiver's investigation into the failure of the company is on-going and will include the question of how the company was funded.

BHG Group

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when her Department was first informed of alleged malpractice by the directors of Better Health Global Ltd., and the BHG group of companies; and if she will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 2 November 2004
	The official receiver was appointed liquidator of Betterhealth Global Ltd., Betterhealth International Ltd. and Self-Pay (International) Ltd. on the making of the winding-up orders on 23 June 2004, and the investigations into the causes of failure of each company are on-going.
	With respect to other companies in the Betterhealth Global group, my Department does not comment on the affairs of live companies that are not the subject of insolvency proceedings.

BHG Group

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps the official receiver (a) has taken and (b) is planning to take to investigate the circumstances surrounding the liquidation of Better Health Global Ltd.; and if she will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 2 November 2004
	The official receiver has interviewed the principle UK based director of Betterhealth Global Ltd.; the investigations into the causes of failure of the company are on-going.

BHG Group

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received about alleged malpractice by the directors of Better Health Global Ltd. and the BHG group of companies; and if she will make a statement.

Nigel Griffiths: holding answer 2 November 2004
	It would be inappropriate for me to comment on the affairs of BHG until the official receiver's investigations into the company's causes of failure have been completed.
	With respect to other companies in the Betterhealth Global group, my Department does not comment on the affairs of live companies that are not the subject of insolvency proceedings.

EU Presidency (Greece)

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many times during the Greek presidency of the EU (a) the Committee on implementation of the multiannual programme for enterprise and entrepreneurship, in particular for small and medium-sized enterprises and (b) the Committee on the specific programme for research, technological development and demonstration on promotion of innovation and participation of small and medium-sized enterprises met; when and where these meetings took place; which UK Government expert was present at each meeting; what (i) technical and (ii) financial issues were raised by the UK Government expert at each meeting; what recommendations each committee produced during that period; what actions were (A) proposed and (B) taken by (1) the EU and (2) the UK Government as a result of each committee's recommendations; and if she will make a statement.

Nigel Griffiths: The Enterprise Programme Management Committee met once during the Greek presidency, at the European Commission in Brussels on 13 March 2003. Two members of the Small Business Service represented the UK. Article 14 of the Rules of Procedure states that the committee's discussions shall be kept confidential.
	The Horizontal Configuration of the Programme Committee of the FP6 Specific Programme, "Integrating and Strengthening the European Research Area", which considers SME issues, met twice during the Greek presidency, at the Commission on 4 March and 21 May. A DTI official from the Office of Science and Technology represented the UK. Article 14 of the Rules of Procedure states that the committee's discussions shall be kept confidential.

Gas

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of prospective changes to the wholesale price of gas in the UK in the course of (a) 2005 and (b) 2006.

Mike O'Brien: UK wholesale prices are linked indirectly to movements in oil prices. Markets in continental Europe are not fully competitive and gas prices are contractually linked to oil prices. The UK therefore imports the gas-oil link through the Bacton-Zeebrugge Interconnector. Expectations are that, in the short run, oil prices will remain relatively high.
	Wholesale prices are also in part driven by uncertainty about potential tightness of supply as the UK makes the transition to becoming a net gas importer. There is, however, strong evidence that there are a number of infrastructure projects due to come on stream that will increase gas supply. These include the doubling of the import capacity of the Interconnector and three major LNG import terminals. The DTI and Ofgem Joint Energy Security of Supply Group monitors the situation and provides information to ensure the market is aware of developments.

Nuclear Decommissioning

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what proportion of the revenues accrued to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in its first operational year are earmarked to come from income generated from (a) Thorp and (b) the Sellafield Mox Plant;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Portsmouth South (Mr. Hancock) of 14 September 2004, Official Report, columns 1536–37W, on Mox Plant (Sellafield), for what reasons the details of (a) the Sellafield Mox Plant annual revenues and (b) SMP profits are classified as commercially confidential.

Mike O'Brien: Details of the Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant (THORP) and the Sellafield MOX Plant (SMP) annual revenues and profits are classified as commercially confidential, as they relate to future income which if divulged could lead to improper gain or advantage by BNFL's competitors and customers.
	The Government recognise that, while THORP and SMP are operational, there will be interest in how the plants perform. The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority's (NDA) annual report and accounts will therefore include information, consistent with the requirements of commercial confidentiality, on the financial and operational performances.

Post Office Closures

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what steps she will take to provide alternative services following the closure of Crown post offices in city centres;
	(2)  if she will make a statement on the closure of Crown post offices by Royal Mail.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 4 November 2004
	Decisions on individual closures and conversions are operational and commercial matters for Post Office Ltd. The company has no plans for the large scale closure of directly managed post offices and anticipates that fewer than five directly managed branches will close in 2005–06. Post Office Ltd.'s policy is to maintain a core network of directly managed post offices while continuing to drive efficiencies, with the aim of making the business commercially viable. This strategy includes the conversion of some individual directly managed offices to franchise or agency status where suitable opportunities arise.

Renewable Energy

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to allocate further funding to support the development of renewable energy.

Mike O'Brien: holding answer 4 November 2004
	The Government have announced that they have allocated in total over £500 million in support for research and development and demonstration projects for longer term renewables and low carbon energy generation technologies, over the period from 2002 to 2008.
	This includes the additional funding announced in the 2004 Spending Review during the summer. We are currently considering how this additional funding will be allocated between the different renewables technologies.
	In addition, the Renewables Obligation, taken together with the exemption from the climate change levy for renewable electricity, is estimated to provide support for renewables of around £l billion a year by 2010.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

CAFCASS

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many reports were completed by the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) in the last financial year; and in how many cases contact between children and the father was absent at the commencement of proceedings and then re-established following the intervention of CAFCASS staff.

Margaret Hodge: CAFCASS completed 33,803 reports in the last financial year. CAFCASS does not record the number of cases where contact between children and their father was absent. However, a one-off survey of 300 families (carried out by the National Association of Probation Officers in the summer of 2002) reported that prior to commencement of CAFCASS involvement, there was no contact with the non-resident parent in 42 per cent. of cases; following the completion of CAFCASS work, only 6 per cent. of non-resident parents remained without contact. The information in the survey was non gender specific.
	A survey conducted by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) asked a sample of resident and a sample of non-resident parents about the contact arrangements with their children following relationship breakdown. Results for the non-resident parent sample showed that 78 per cent. of children whose parents had made informal contact arrangements had direct (face-to-face) contact with their non-resident fathers at least once a month. The resident parents sample reported that 61 per cent. of children had direct contact at least once a month.

Carers

Parmjit Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what support is available for people who take responsibility for grandchildren who would otherwise be in care; and if he will increase this support.

Margaret Hodge: Anyone caring for a child under 16 is entitled to claim child benefit and to apply for child tax credits (CTC) subject to the usual eligibility criteria. Where a child is orphaned or one parent has died and the other is missing, the carer may also be entitled to claim guardian's allowance.
	Local authorities are also empowered to assist with the care of children and young people under the Children Act 1989. Where the local authority determines that a child is "in need" the authority may then provide services to meet those needs, or, in exceptional cases, provide financial assistance, under Section 17. Some local authorities also support families who have a Residence Order in respect of the child that they are looking after. This type of allowance is generally a contribution towards the cost of accommodating and maintaining them. In both cases the services and payments are provided once an assessment of need has been carried out and are at the discretion of the local authority.

Disabled Students (Access)

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what duties (a) colleges and (b) schools have with respect to access for people with disabilities; and what assessment he has made of the progress of (i) colleges and (ii) schools in complying with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

Margaret Hodge: The SEN and Disability Act (SENDA) 2001 amended Part 4 of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 1995 to bring access to education within the remit of the Act. From September 2002 it has been unlawful for schools and institutions providing post-16 education to discriminate against disabled pupils or students for a reason relating to their disability, without justification. Both have a duty to make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled pupils and students are not put at a substantial disadvantage in comparison to those who are not disabled. For schools this does not include the provision of auxiliary aids or services or making changes to physical features.
	Schools are under a duty to plan strategically to increase access over time. This duty includes planning to increase access to school premises, to the curriculum and providing written material in alternative formats to ensure accessibility. In the first planning period, 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2006, some £300 million is being made available to local education authorities in England through the Schools Access Initiative for projects to improve the accessibility of mainstream schools to disabled pupils.
	Post-16 institutions have been required to make reasonable adjustments, including the provision of auxiliary aids and services, since September 2003; and from September 2005 they will also have a duty to make changes to physical features. Since 2002, £180 million has been allocated to help colleges of further education and local education authority adult education provision in England, become accessible.The duties not to discriminate apply to responsible bodies in England, Wales and Scotland. The planning duty applies in England and Wales only. The Scottish Parliament has legislated separately to introduce a similar duty in Scotland.
	The Secretary of State asked the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) to report on the progress being made by schools in England in implementing the duties they acquired under SENDA and their report "Special educational needs and disability: towards inclusive schools" was published last month. Ofsted will continue to monitor the disability duties as part of their on-going inspections of schools.
	The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) requires all colleges of further education in England to comply with the requirements of the DDA. The LSC's Annual Equality and Diversity Report for 2002–03 includes an assessment of overall progress towards compliance.
	The DDA requires schools and post-16 institutions as employers not to unjustifiably discriminate against current or prospective employees with disabilities, or those who have had disabilities in the past, and as service providers not to unjustifiably discriminate against disabled people, where they provide non-educational services. More details about these duties may be found at the Disability Rights Commission's website: www.drc-gb.org.

Education Maintenance Allowances

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the total cost of the education maintenance allowance (a) has been in 2004 and (b) is expected to be in 2004, broken down into (i) total value of allowance awarded, (ii) administration costs and (iii) other costs.

Ivan Lewis: The amount already spent on EMA this year is £64 million. The estimated cost this year for EMA is £275 million which is broken down as follows: payments to young people £232.6 million, administration costs £37 million and other costs of £5.2 million.

Foster Carers

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if he will review the payment regime for foster carers;
	(2)  if he will apply the national minimum wage rules to foster carers.

Margaret Hodge: The Secretary of State has tabled amendments to the Children Bill which would enable regulations to be made prescribing a national minimum allowance to be paid to foster carers in England and Wales.
	We propose to work closely with local authorities over the next couple of years to try and find ways of simplifying and making more transparent the payment structures which they have in place. We shall be monitoring progress very closely and this amendment gives us the power to prescribe a national minimum allowance if that is considered appropriate.

Foster Carers

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has to assist local authorities in recruiting younger couples into the fostering profession.

Margaret Hodge: The Green Paper, 'Every Child Matters' explicitly encourages more people to consider fostering, including groups such as single people, older people, unmarried couples and lone parents who may not realise they are eligible. In February this year we produced a Fostering Publicity Pack designed to help local authorities to run targeted local campaigns to recruit new foster carers for looked after children. We have also awarded a 3-year grant of £180,000 to the Fostering Network to support Foster Care Fortnight, which has a particular focus on recruitment.

Frontline Technologies Limited

Eric Forth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the purpose was of the action against Frontline Technologies Limited (European patent UK MO 0 664 061); what the cost to the Government was of the case; how much of this was borne by the Department; and what the outcome of the case was.

Charles Clarke: holding answer 15 October 2004
	My Department issued proceedings against Frontline Technology Limited to challenge the validity of European Patent UK MO 0 664 061 which covers the process of exchanging student data over a wireless network using portable computers and transceivers in an educational environment. The patent encompasses a wide range of school activity including, for example, wireless electronic pupil registration and attendance management systems.
	These proceedings were primarily brought because the patent restricted schools' access to a full range of technology. Additionally, my Department assessed the potential additional costs to schools for licence fees, based on Frontline Technology's published terms and scale of charges, to be substantial over the life of the patent to 2013.
	The costs of the litigation are subject to negotiation between the parties and in the circumstances it would not be appropriate to cite a figure for those costs. However, the litigation costs incurred to date are a fraction of the potential cost that schools could have incurred by way of licence fees.
	The written judgment of the patent court (Deputy Judge David Young) was handed down on 17 June 2004. My Department substantially won its case thus giving greater freedom to schools to buy wireless products and services of their choice, reducing costs for schools and stimulating the wireless technology market through greater competition. Frontline Technology Limited has applied to amend its patent by way of a statutory procedure. My Department is challenging the scope of the proposed amendment.

Integrated Children's System

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans the Government have to abolish the Child Protection Register; and on what time scale.

Margaret Hodge: The Government made it clear, in "Keeping Children Safe: The Government's response to the Victoria Climbié Inquiry Report and Joint Chief Inspectors' Report Safeguarding Children", that in the short to medium term, the training materials commissioned to accompany the booklet "What To Do If You're Worried A Child Is Being Abused" would include a section on child protection registers. In the longer term, as the Integrated Children's System becomes widely used, it will allow staff to identify those children who, for example, have been the subject of inquiries into whether they are at risk of suffering, or have suffered, significant harm, have been the subject of a child protection conference, or are the subject of a child protection plan. The child protection register will therefore no longer be necessary. It can then be discontinued as a separate register at a date to be agreed when the Integrated Children's System has been fully introduced across England and Wales.

Minister for Children

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills for what reason the right hon. Member for Barking (Margaret Hodge) will not meet Mr. T. Perry, a constituent of the hon. Member for Chesham and Amersham.

Margaret Hodge: Heavy diary commitments do not allow the right hon. Member for Barking to meet with Mr. Perry. However Mr. Perry has had lengthy telephone conversations with departmental officials and has received detailed replies to his correspondence, if Mr. Perry wishes to write a further letter to the right hon. Member for Barking, he will be assured of a reply.

Pupil Exclusions

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will break down by type of special educational need pupils with special educational needs who were excluded from schools in 2002–03.

Margaret Hodge: The requested information is not currently available.

Pupil Referral Units

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the latest available figure is for the average period that a pupil at each key stage spends in a pupil referral unit.

Margaret Hodge: The requested information is not collected centrally.

Residential Care (Children)

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children were in residential care in (a) England and (b) the East Riding of Yorkshire in each of the last two years.

Margaret Hodge: The information requested is given in the table.
	
		Children looked after in residential placements at 31 March 2002 and 2003
		
			  31 March 2002 31 March 2003 
		
		
			 England 7,900 7,700 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 30 35 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures have been taken from the CLA100 return.
	2. Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short-term placements.
	3. Residential placements include secure units, children's homes and hostels, and residential schools.
	4. National figures have been rounded to the nearest 100. Local authority figures have been rounded to the nearest 5.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Antisocial Behaviour Orders

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to encourage local authorities and the police to name young people convicted of offences under antisocial behaviour legislation; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: The identity of any young person who commits a criminal offence is protected by automatic reporting restrictions under the Children and Young Persons Act 1933.
	Antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) are civil orders rather than criminal penalties and are not subject to the same restrictions. Full details of the order, including the name and address of the perpetrator, can be publicised. However, the breach of an ASBO is a criminal offence, which means the identity of the youth is protected; we will be taking steps to change this.
	In our Strategic Plan, published in July this year, we made a commitment to look into ending anonymity for people under 18 who breach the conditions of their ASBOs.

Asylum Seekers

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for asylum this year have been unsuccessful; and how many unsuccessful applicants have been deported.

Des Browne: 26,360 initial decisions were made between January and June 2004, the latest date for which figures are available. Of these, 890 were granted asylum, 80 were granted Humanitarian Protection, 2,085 were granted Discretionary Leave and 23,305 were refusals.
	32,370 appeals were determined by adjudicators between January and June 2004, the latest date for which figures are available. Of these, 6,755 were allowed, 24,875 were dismissed and the remainder were withdrawn or abandoned. Appeals do not necessarily relate to initial decisions made during January and June 2004.
	6,450 principal asylum applicants were removed from the UK between January and June 2004, 7,810 including dependants. This includes people who have departed "voluntarily" after enforcement action had been initiated against them and those leaving under the Assisted Voluntary Returns Programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration. Removals do not necessarily relate to initial decision or appeal determinations made during January and June 2004.
	Information on initial decisions, appeals and removals are published on a quarterly and annual basis. The next publication covering the third quarter of 2004 (July to September) will be available on 16 November on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.

Asylum Seekers

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department under what circumstances asylum seekers are required to attend in person their appeal decision.

David Lammy: I have been asked to reply.
	There are currently no circumstances in which the Immigration Appellate Authority (IAA) requires asylum seekers to attend the giving of their appeal decision in person.
	Appeals against immigration decisions taken by the Secretary of State for the Home Department are made to the IAA. The procedures of the IAA are governed by The Asylum and Immigration (Procedure) Rules 2003 which contain provisions for the tribunal to serve a written determination upon every party and any representative acting for a party.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  when he will reply to the letter to him dated 14 September from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Hanaf Attita;
	(2)  when he will reply to the letter to him dated 22 September from the right hon. Member for Manchester,Gorton, with regard to Mrs. R. Faiz;
	(3)  when he will reply to the letter to him dated 14 September from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Mr. A. Hussain, transferred to him by the Attorney General;
	(4)  when he will answer the letter to him dated 14 September from the right hon. Member for Manchester Gorton with regard to Mr. Arshad Hussain.

David Blunkett: I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 4 November 2004.

Crime/Sentencing Statistics

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were charged with crimes in each year since 1995, broken down by (a) gender, (b) age and (c) type of offence.

Hazel Blears: Statistics of defendants charged with crimes are not collected centrally. The table, which has been placed in the Library, however, gives the number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts by gender, age and offence type for England and Wales 1995 to 2002.
	Statistics for 2003 will be published in November.

Graffiti

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the progress of the graffiti removal notice pilots.

Hazel Blears: The Government recognises that graffiti causes offence to communities and individuals, leads to the fear of crime and is criminal damage.
	The Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 sections 48 to 52 gave local authorities the powers in 12 pilot areas to issue graffiti removal notices to speed up the removal of graffiti and recover their costs on certain types of property. This can be applied to the owners of street furniture, statutory undertakers and educational establishments. The Home Office is currently conducting a consultation and associated RIA on the impact and associated costs of national roll-out of these powers. The consultation period finishes on 31 December 2004.
	The 12 pilot areas have demonstrated that constructive partnerships between local authorities, statutory undertakers and the owners of street furniture have led to the rapid and efficient removal of graffiti. We have also seen local authorities, the telecommunication industry and local police sharing their knowledge to secure prosecutions against graffiti vandals.

Illegal Immigration

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his plans to cut the levels of illegal immigration to the UK.

Des Browne: We have already made significant progress in strengthening the UK's borders. The measures we have put in place have reduced by half the number of asylum claims and they also serve to prevent would-be illegal migrants from circumventing our immigration controls. The operation of juxtaposed control operations and deployment of detection equipment overseas impact directly on those attempting to enter the UK illegally, regardless of whether they intend to abuse our asylum system or to reside or work here without entitlement.
	We are committed to maintaining robust pre and on entry controls to prevent illegal immigration into the United Kingdom and there are many strands of work currently being undertaken to ensure the integrity of UK border controls. These include:
	Reflex, the multi-agency forum which brings together key law enforcement players including the Immigration Service, as well as relevant government Departments and the Security Services, under the chair of the National Crime Squad to tackle organised illegal immigration (including human smuggling and trafficking). We have trebled funding for Reflex to tackle organised immigration crime with 20 million each year over the next three years.
	As part of a longer-term strategy, the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) manages an expanding network of Immigration Liaison Officers in key overseas posts who work closely with local law enforcement agencies to combat illegal migratory flows.
	The deployment of New Detection Technology overseas.
	The extension of Juxtaposed Controls, now including Calais, Coquelles, Paris and from the end of October Brussels to allow the admissibility of passengers to be determined prior to embarkation to the UK.
	The ongoing deployment of our Airline Liaison Officer network overseas.
	An informed and robust visa strategy.
	Introduction of a criminal offence to arrive without a valid travel document.
	Close working with other UK border agencies and European and International partners.
	The measures we have already taken to control illegal immigration and unfounded asylum claims are subject to on-going review and we will continue to use and develop our initiatives, resources and response capabilities to allow us to focus on areas of potential abuse whilst expediting the clearance of bona fide passengers.

Indymedia Servers

Richard Allan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether prior notification was received by his Department concerning the seizure of the Indymedia servers on 7 October.

David Blunkett: holding answer 28 October 2004
	I can confirm that the Home Office received no prior notification in relation to this matter.

Money Laundering

Ross Cranston: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his Department's consultation on money laundering and accountants' obligations to report money laundering.

Caroline Flint: On 4 August the Home Office issued an informal consultation paper seeking views on whether, and if so how, the law on the obligations of accountants to report money laundering needed to be changed to bring it into line with European law. This was in response to representations from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales which challenged the treatment of accountants, auditors and tax advisers under Part 7 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.
	The consultation period ended on 30 September and around 40 responses have been received. The Home Office is giving full consideration to the responses, in consultation with other Departments. The Government have not reached a final view on whether the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and the Money Laundering Regulations 2003 need to be changed.

Travel Documents (Prosecutions)

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions have been brought in the last 12 months against people who were suspected of destroying their travel documents.

Des Browne: Section 2 of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants) Act 2004 makes it an offence, in certain circumstances, to fail to produce a travel document when applying for leave to enter. Between 22 September 2004, when this legislation was implemented, and 30 October 2004, 79 people have been charged. This may include people who are suspected of destroying their travel documents.
	There have been 15 convictions in the same period. This figure is provided from locally collated management information and may be subject to change.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Iraq

Adam Price: To ask the Solicitor-General pursuant to the answer of 26 October 2004, Official Report, columns 1105–06W, whether the Attorney-General has sought the Prime Minister's view on the veracity of Iraqi declarations on weapons of mass destruction in the light of the evidence now available.

Harriet Harman: No.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Private Pensions

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps the Government have taken to encourage individuals to take out private pensions.

Malcolm Wicks: The Government are very keen to encourage individuals to take out private pensions. We have introduced stakeholder pensions, a low charge, flexible and portable pension arrangement as an alternative option to personal pensions, which can be costly and inflexible.
	Pensions also offer more generous tax treatment on pensions than on any other form of investment. In addition we want to encourage individuals to plan for their retirement. Clauses in the Pensions Bill will enable us to promote and facilitate financial planning for retirement as part of our wider Informed Choice agenda.

Disabled Discrimination

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to tackle discrimination against disabled people in the workplace.

Maria Eagle: By extending the Disability Discrimination Act from 1 October this year, we have provided comprehensive protection against disability discrimination in employment. The employment provisions now cover an additional one million employers and seven million more jobs, and we will be undertaking a targeted publicity campaign to highlight to employers their duties under the Act. In addition, provisions in the draft Disability Discrimination Bill would extend the protection of the Act, including in employment, to more people with HIV, cancer and MS.

State Retirement Pension

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent submissions he has received in relation to state retirement pensions from the National Pensioner's Convention; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: I received a copy of the National Pensioners Convention "Pensioners Manifesto" earlier this year. The Government shares its aims of securing dignity and fulfilment for both today's and future generations of pensioners.
	My hon. Friend may also be interested to know my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State is due to meet Rodney Bickerstaff, president of the National Pensioners Convention on 15 November.

Economic Inactivity

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the Department's policies for reducing economic inactivity.

Jane Kennedy: Between 1979 and 1997 the number of people receiving incapacity benefit trebled and had that trend continued there would be around 4 million people now on incapacity benefit instead of 2.7 million.
	Almost all of those who move on to incapacity benefits want and expect to go back to work, and our reforms will give them the opportunity and full range of help needed to realise that goal.

Agency Staff

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 1 November 2004, Official Report, column 113W, on agency staff, how many agency temporary staff were working for his Department in its central headquarters buildings in as many of the last five years as may be calculated without incurring disproportionate cost.

Maria Eagle: None of the information requested could be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.

Construction Industry

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) deaths and (b) notified injuries there have been in the construction industry in each year since 1996.

Jane Kennedy: The table shows fatal and total injuries in construction reported to HSE under the RIDDOR Regulations during the period 1996–97 to 2003–4 1 .
	
		Injuries to workers in the construction industry— reported to all enforcing authorities 1996–97 to 2003–04 1
		
			 Status Year Fatal injuries Total injuries 
		
		
			 Workers 1996–97 90 13,810 
			  1997–98 80 14,671 
			  1998–99 65 14,297 
			  1999–2000 81 15,334 
			  2000–01 105 14,609 
			  2001–02 80 14,370 
			  2002–03 70 14,369 
			  (4)2003–04 70 (5)—; 
		
	
	
		Injuries to members of the public in the construction industry— reported to all enforcing authorities 1996–97 to 2002–03
		
			 Status Year Fatal injuries Total injuries 
		
		
			 Members of the public 1996–97 3 408 
			  1997–98 6 345 
			  1998–99 3 381 
			  1999–2000 6 409 
			  2000–01 8 324 
			  2001–02 5 386 
			  2002–03 5 268 
			  (4)2003–04 3 (5)—; 
		
	
	(4) Provisional
	(5) Provisional non-fatal injury figures for 2003–04 will be available on 18 November 2004 following the publication of Health and Safety Statistics Highlights.
	Note:
	The construction industry is identified using Standard Industrial Classification 1992 Section F.
	Injuries are reported and defined under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 1995. These include injuries to employees, self-employed people and members of the public.

Council Tax Benefit

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people are not claiming the council tax benefit to which they are entitled; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Pond: Our most recent estimate, 2001–02, is that between 1.7 million and 2.3 million people who are entitled to council tax benefit are not receiving it.
	Since then we have been working hard with local authorities to ensure that those people who are entitled to council tax benefit, get it.

Council Tax Benefit

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) households and (b) pensioner households claimed council tax benefit in England in (i) 1997 and (ii) the latest year for which figures are available.

Chris Pond: The available information is in the table.
	
		Council tax benefit recipients in England
		
			  All cases Aged 60 and over 
		
		
			 May 1997 4,627,000 2,223,000 
			 May 2003 3,851,000 1,953,000 
			 May 2004 3,993,600 (6)— 
		
	
	(6) Not available.
	Notes:
	1. Data refers to benefit units which may be a single person, couple or family.
	2. Figures at 1997 and 2003 are rounded to the nearest thousand. The figure for May 2004 is rounded the nearest hundred.
	3. 1997 and 2003 figures are based on a 1 per cent. sample and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling variation.
	4. Council tax benefit totals exclude any Second Adult Rebate cases.
	5. "Aged 60 and over" refers to cases where the claimant and/or partner is aged 60 or over.
	6. May 2004 data includes estimates for any non-responding local authorities.
	7. The latest figures available for recipients aged 60 or over are May 2003.
	9. No figures on the number of recipients of council tax benefit have been produced since the introduction of pension credit.
	Source:
	Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System, Annual 1 per cent. sample, taken in May 1997 and 2003. Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System Quarterly 100 per cent. caseload stock-count taken in May 2004.

Disability Rights Legislation

Betty Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what (a) areas, (b) groups and (c) services have been affected by the extension of rights under disability rights legislation since 1997.

Maria Eagle: Since 1997, this Government has significantly extended and improved rights for disabled people in employment, access to goods and services, education and transport. The Disability Discrimination Act now provides substantial protection against disability discrimination for around 10 million disabled adults and 700,000 disabled children.

Disability Rights Legislation

Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what impact the extension of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 on 1 October has had on disabled people's rights.

Maria Eagle: The improvements we made to the Disability Discrimination Act on 1 October this year extend the employment duties to a further 1 million employers and cover an additional 7 million jobs, including 600,000 in which disabled people already work. By requiring service providers to tackle physical barriers to disabled people accessing their services, they will also open up access to goods and services for the 10 million disabled adults and 700,000 disabled children covered by the Act.

EU Commissions

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many times during the Greek presidency of the EU the Audit Board of the Administrative Commission on Social Security for Migrant Workers met; when and where these meetings took place; which UK Government expert was present at each meeting; what (i) technical and (ii) financial issues were raised by the UK Government expert at each meeting; what recommendations the Committee produced during that period; what actions were (A) proposed and (B) taken by (1) the EU and (2) the UK Government as a result of the Committee's recommendations; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: I have been asked to reply.
	The audit board of the administrative commission on social security for migrant workers met once during the Greek presidency, on 7–8 May 2003 in Brussels. Officials from the Department attended. The first day was a plenary session and the second devoted to a series of bilateral discussions.
	The United Kingdom presented a paper setting out the average costs of treatment given by the national health service in the UK for the year 2000. A number of other member states also presented average cost papers. After analysis and discussion all were accepted by the audit board apart from that for France which was remitted to the next meeting for further explanations and study.
	During the Greek presidency, the audit board considered matters concerning; improvement of the administration of, and the then current position on, the payment of old claims between member states; questions concerning the revision of Regulation (EEC) no. 574/72 in the light of work then in progress to simplify and update Regulation (EEC) no 1408/71. The audit board also discussed several other more minor matters which required further deliberation at subsequent meetings or at the administrative commission.
	UK officials had bilateral talks on 8 May 2003 with Austria, Belgium and Italy concerning reimbursements of mutual claims.

Jobcentre Plus

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many additional Jobcentre Plus employees have been employed in the last two years; and what the projected increase over the next three years is for each existing or planned Jobcentre Plus office in North Wales.

Jane Kennedy: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, David Anderson. He will write to the hon. Member.
	Letter from David Anderson to Mr. Chris Ruane, dated 8 November 2004
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions concerning how many extra Jobcentre Plus employees have been employed in the last two years; and the projected increase over the next three years. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	When Jobcentre Plus was created in April 2002 the staff headcount for North Wales stood at 973.15 (whole time equivalent posts). In real terms, no extra staff have been employed since April 2002 in the two Jobcentre Plus Districts that cover North Wales. Whilst there has been some use of casual staff to meet short term business needs, there has been a year-on-year reduction in staffing levels, in order to meet strict head count targets, as shown in the table below.
	
		
			 Year ending Headcount target Staff in post 
		
		
			 31 March 2003 885.2 876.73 
			 31 March 2004 882.3 875.69 
		
	
	Note:
	The figures are expressed as whole time equivalent (WTE) posts.
	For the current year, we are working towards a head count target of 841.12 (WTE posts), by March 2005. Head count targets for the coming three years have yet to be finalised.
	These reductions in staffing levels must be seen against the background of a significant investment in the modernisation of our office network and IT infrastructure, which will enable us to operate more efficiently, releasing more of our staff for customer facing roles. Improved services and efficient ways of working mean that, overall, we will need fewer staff to meet our targets and to deliver to our customers.
	I hope this is helpful.

Pension Offices (Backlogs)

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on backlogs in local pension offices.

Malcolm Wicks: The current Pension Service workloads are within the normal parameters for intake and clearance and are closely monitored at a local level ensuring a consistent service is provided nationally. Where there are problems at individual pension centres, action is taken to remedy this as soon as possible.

Pension Service

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many and what percentage of calls made to the Pension Service in each month since January (a) were answered, (b) were abandoned and (c) received an engaged tone;
	(2)  how many calls were made to the pension credit application line in each month since July; and how many and what percentage of calls (a) were answered within 30 seconds, (b) received an engaged tone or recorded message that all agents are busy and (c) were abandoned.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is given in tables 1 and 2 as follows. The figures are comparable with private sector norms of 90 per cent. of calls answered and 80 per cent. answered within 20 seconds. The pension credit application line, in particular, aims to answer 95 per cent. of calls and has achieved that standard for the period since it became operational.
	
		Table 1: Calls to the Pension Service, January-August 2004
		
			  Calls answered Calls abandoned Calls blocked 
			  Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage 
		
		
			 January 1,765,520 92.1 113,830 5.9 3,850 0.2 
			 February 1,599,720 88.8 157,510 8.7 85,060 5.1 
			 March 1,600,030 87.2 214,370 11.7 178,980 10.2 
			 April 1,378,000 85.6 173,770 10.8 92,400 6.1 
			 May 1,240,810 92.9 70,630 5.3 10,550 0.9 
			 June 1,346,200 93.4 86,800 6.0 9,010 0.7 
			 July 1,268,250 92.5 88,310 6.4 16,680 1.4 
			 August 1,231,950 90.9 113,220 8.4 5,200 0.4 
		
	
	
		Table 2: Calls to the pension credit application line, July-August 2004
		
			  July August 
		
		
			 Calls received 239,990 151,540 
			
			 Calls answered within 30 seconds 
			 Number 212,390 138,970 
			 Percentage 93.99 95.06 
			
			 Calls receiving engaged tone or recorded message 
			 Number 30 5,320 
			 Percentage 0.01 3.36 
			
			 Calls abandoned   
			 Number 3,520 1,400 
			 Percentage 1.48 0.93 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Numbers of calls are rounded to the nearest 10.
	2. Table 1 does not include calls to the pension credit application line.
	3. In both tables, the numbers of calls answered, abandoned and engaged (blocked) are not calculated on precisely the same basis and in some cases the rows will not add up to exactly 100 per cent.
	4. The number of calls to the application line which received the engaged tone or a recorded message was high in August as a result of the telephone system being down for a time.
	5. The number of calls received by the application line is a measure of the total number of calls from customers made to the application line number 0800 99 1234. The number of calls answered within 30 seconds is a measure of all calls answered in application line sites and excludes any calls abandoned by the customer.
	6. The number of calls to the application line abandoned includes only calls abandoned after the customer has received the recorded message.

Personal Injury Claims

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress he has made on his plans for a pilot scheme for personal injury claims handling; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: The Department is working with insurers, lawyers, employers and employee representatives to develop a specification for a pilot scheme for resolving ELCI claims cost effectively, more transparently and quickly. The Department is about to produce a third version of the pilot specification which addresses all the issues and concerns raised by stakeholders to date. Once stakeholders agree a specification, the first pilots can be launched.

Select Committees

Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recommendations by parliamentary select committees have been adopted by his Department since June 2001.

Alan Johnson: The information requested is not collected centrally.
	The Government are required to respond formally to reports produced by select committees. In doing so the Government set out their views on the recommendations made by select committees, including whether or not it proposes to adopt a particular recommendation.
	Copies of all Government responses are available in the Library.

State Second Pension

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to move state second pension to a flat rate.

Malcolm Wicks: No decision has been taken as yet regarding whether and when to make the state second pension a flat-rate scheme.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Adam Smith Institute

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much the Government have spent on funding to the Adam Smith Institute for research into utilities in developing countries in 2004.

Hilary Benn: DFID has not funded any research by the Adam Smith Institute into utilities in developing countries. The consultancy company Adam Smith International Ltd. have provided advice to development partners this year on reform of public enterprises, including utilities, in Ghana, South Africa, Iraq and the West Bank and Gaza.

Afghanistan

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment has been made of viable crop alternatives to poppy cultivation in Afghanistan; and whether alternative crops would be predominantly (a) supplied to domestic markets and (b) exported.

Hilary Benn: The Department for International Development is funding practical research into alternative ways for those cultivating the opium poppy production to earn a living. This research is generating a variety of alternative and improved products to supply both the domestic and export markets.
	DFID has established a Research in Alternative Livelihoods Fund for Afghanistan. The fund is providing £3 million over three years for applied research into natural resource-based livelihoods, including crops, livestock, natural products, post-harvest processing and rural services.
	The fund is presently supporting seven projects. Three projects aim to identify local, national and international market opportunities for alternative crop varieties and test a variety of agro enterprises and marketing strategies including an organic export feasibility study. Other projects include improved forage and milk production and the introduction of legumes and vegetable crops as viable alternatives to opium poppy cultivation.
	DFID is also funding the development of viable crop alternatives to poppy cultivation in Badakhshan. This includes the establishment of nurseries and greenhouses for fruit and vegetable production, apricot drying, honey bee keeping, poultry farms, cashmere and silk production and a tthan-weaving programme.

Bangladesh

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the effects of the floods in Bangladesh on (a) the Bhairab Bridge project and (b) the Road Rehabilitation II and III projects funded by his Department; and what plans he has to secure further funding for projects funded by his Department and devastated by the floods.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: The UK was the first bilateral donor to announce support for the flood-affected people of Bangladesh. On 26 July 2004, the UK Government allocated £10 million through DFID to meet immediate flood emergency needs. On 18 August 2004, I announced a further £15 million in response to the UN Consolidated Appeal. On 26 October 2004, I approved a further £4 million to be disbursed through the World Food Programme. The UK's overall contribution has been channelled through several agencies to address both the food and non-food emergency needs of the worst affected poor people.
	Bhairab Bridge was opened in 2002. DFID continues to provide technical assistance to the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) of the Government of Bangladesh to help with the maintenance of the bridge.
	Between mid-July 2004 and the end of August 2004, the bridge experienced the first extensive flood since its completion. The landscaped area surrounding the bridge was submerged by one foot of water and the jetty road at Bhairab was submerged to a depth of approximately three feet. However, the flood did not cause any major damage to the bridge apart from some top soil sliding on the embankments. Where minor damage has taken place the operator has taken immediate steps to repair the damage.
	The roads constructed with World Bank loans under the Road Rehabilitation and Maintenance Projects (RRMP2 and RRMP3) survived the floods without serious damage. DFID has not directly financed the construction of roads under these projects; UK support has been restricted to developing capacity in the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) and Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) of the Ministry of Communications.
	Within the £29 million emergency response to the floods, DFID approved £3.9 million in September for emergency repairs to roads and bridges. RHD has decided that this should be spent on road repairs in Dhaka Zone, one of the worst flood affected areas. RHD has, with the help of a DFID-funded consultant, rapidly agreed a set of criteria for selecting those roads most in need of repair.
	The monsoon season is now over and the flood situation continues to improve. All the emergency food shelters have closed. DFID's aid framework for Bangladesh continues to grow, but the emphasis is now shifting from emergency assistance to long-term development.

Belarus

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid the United Kingdom has given Belarus in each year since its independence from the Soviet Union.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: Belarus became independent in 1992. The following table shows UK Bilateral aid to Belarus in each year since then.
	
		UK bilateral aid to Belarus
		
			 Fiscal year UK gross public expenditure (£000) 
		
		
			 1992–93 26 
			 1993–94 183 
			 1994–95 593 
			 1995–96 1,139 
			 1996–97 972 
			 1997–98 698 
			 1998–99 472 
			 1999–2000 278 
			 2000–01 82 
			 2001–02 61 
			 2002–03 57 
			 2003–04 49 
		
	
	Belarus has also benefited from assistance from multilateral organisations to which the UK contributes. The following table shows, in £ million, the UK share of spending in Belarus through multilateral organisations:
	
		UK share of multilateral aid to Belarus -- £ million
		
			 Calendar year EC Other UN Total 
		
		
			 1992 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 1993 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 1994 1.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 
			 1995 5.6 0.0 0.1 5.7 
			 1996 1.2 0.0 0.1 1.3 
			 1997 0.8 0.0 0.0 0.8 
			 1998 0.5 0.1 0.1 0.7 
			 1999 0.8 0.0 0.1 0.9 
			 2000 0.2 0.3 0.1 0.6 
			 2001 0.4 0.1 0.1 0.6 
			 2002 0.3 0.0 0.1 0.4

Caribbean

George Foulkes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance is being given by his Department to disaster-prevention work in the Caribbean.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID is enhancing the region's pre-emptive disaster management capacity through its support of multilateral and regional initiatives and direct assistance for the UK's Caribbean Overseas Territories.
	DFID has committed £3.75 million to the disaster mitigation and preparedness programmes of the Pan American Health Organisation's Programme for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Relief (PAHO PED) for the period 2003–08. DFID has also supported PAHO PED's emergency work in Montserrat and Haiti in 2004. PAHO PED focus on three key activities:
	preparing the health sector for disasters
	reducing the vulnerability of hospitals
	reducing the vulnerability of water and sanitation systems.
	PAHO PED has also trained many professionals in the Caribbean region on disaster risk reduction policy and practice.
	DFID has an institutional partnership agreement with the International Federation of the Red Cross that includes support to its Disasters and Emergencies Relief Fund through an annual contribution, currently £221,000. This support enables the Federation to provide immediate support to National Societies around the world to help mobilise immediate emergency relief action following natural disasters. As well as its use in response to the recent hurricanes, the fund is available to ensure swift response to future disasters affecting the Caribbean.
	DFID's will be providing £265,000 of the European Union's (EU) €3 million Caribbean disaster management project. It will be co-ordinated by the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA) in collaboration with the University of the West Indies, the Caribbean Development Bank, Government agencies, non-Government organisations, the Organisation of American States and the Canadian International Development Agency. It will strengthen the region's capacity to cope with disasters through development of disaster management legislation and regulations; national disaster awareness campaigns; the capacity for assessing and disseminating disaster management information on-line and enhancing the ability to undertake disaster management teaching and research.
	DFID is already providing £1.1 million, through its share of a €13.2 million EU project, to strengthen early warning systems in the region, by providing four new digital radars in Barbados, Guyana, Belize and Trinidad and Tobago. The Barbados system will also serve the countries of the Eastern Caribbean.
	DFID's strategy for UK's Caribbean Overseas Territories (COT) calls for
	"more disaster preparedness to mitigate the risk of natural catastrophes, such as hurricanes and volcanic events."
	All hazard risk reduction is increasingly integrated into the assistance given to the COTs by DFID and in our partnership with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Policy direction is complemented by the appointment (since 2001) of a Disaster Management Adviser for the Overseas Territories and a distinct programme, with an annual budget of £350,000. This programme, through advocacy, training and the introduction of good practice, is helping to raise OT disaster preparedness and risk reduction capabilities to appropriate standards.
	DFID continues to be closely involved in the humanitarian response to Hurricanes Frances and Ivan and is committed to learning lessons from these devastating events and, if necessary, to identify opportunities for DFID to provide further support to risk reduction efforts in the region from our ongoing partnerships.

Civil Servants

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the average length of continuous service for civil servants within the Department is.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: The average length of continuous service for permanent and pensionable civil servants within DFID is 11 years six months.

Darfur

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his latest estimate is of the number of people displaced in Darfur.

Hilary Benn: Although it is difficult to accurately calculate the numbers of people displaced in Darfur, Western Sudan, the latest United Nations Humanitarian Profile estimates that approximately 1.6 million people are internally displaced within Darfur as a result of the crisis. The regional breakdown of this figure is 218,000 in North Darfur, 539,000 in South Darfur, and 653,000 in West Darfur. In addition to this figure, it is estimated that there are 200,000 Darfur refugees in neighbouring Chad.
	The overall total of internally displaced people has risen by approximately 151,000 in the last month. Although increased insecurity and the pull of aid in major settlements accounts for two thirds of this rise, the remaining third represents new access to previously inaccessible locations that hold concentrations of internally displaced people—these are not therefore newly displaced people.

Darfur

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his latest assessment is of the number of people who have died in each month in 2004 from malnutrition and disease in Darfur.

Hilary Benn: It is very difficult to provide accurate monthly figures of mortality in Darfur in 2004, given that there was very little access to large proportions of the Darfur in the early part of this year. The latest projections provided by the World Health Organisation (WHO) indicate that between 35,000 and 70,000 deaths occurred between March and September. In presenting these figures, WHO stated that further work was needed to estimate what proportion of these deaths were due to different causes, though it perceived that most were due to diarrhoeal diseases exacerbated by malnutrition.
	The large variation in these figures is due to the fact that they are based on the findings of the WHO's retrospective mortality survey, which only covered North and West Darfur. Assessment in South Darfur was hampered by insecurity. The WHO found that between 15 June and 15 August, the crude mortality rate was 1.5 deaths per 10,000 per day in North Darfur and was 2.9 deaths per 10,000 people per day in South Darfur. Based on the numbers of internally displaced persons at the time, WHO estimated that between 6,000 and 10,000 people were dying per month.
	It should be noted that these figures refer to mortality rates amongst the displaced. Further deaths may have occurred due to malnutrition, disease and for other reasons that have not been captured in the survey. DFID has urged the WHO to complete its survey in South Darfur and to undertake regular monitoring of morbidity and mortality levels throughout Darfur.

Environmental Audits

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 26 October 2004, Official Report, column 1138W, if he will publish the 2004 environmental audits.

Hilary Benn: The audit was commissioned by Pacific Rim Palm Oil and not by DFID. It is therefore a matter for the management of Pacific Rim Palm Oil to decide whether to publish this report.

Palestinian Authority

George Foulkes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of progress in improving financial transparency and accountability within the Palestinian Authority.

Hilary Benn: Substantial progress has been made since 2002 in improving the transparency and accountability of the Palestinian Authority's (PA) financial management systems. This has largely been driven by the Palestinian Finance Minister with donor encouragement.
	A World Bank country financial accountability assessment completed in 2004 endorsed the major improvements made. It also identified key actions needed to further improve the systems. The World Bank public financial management reform trust fund has encouraged further financial reform. Disbursement of funding is conditional on the PA's achievement of agreed benchmarks, including on financial control management, auditing, and procurement.

St. Helena

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with representatives of St. Helena on the improvement of transport facilities to and from the island.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: I have discussed this issue on a number of occasions this year with representatives of St. Helena, including the former Governor and island Councillors. In addition, DFID staff and their counterparts in St. Helena are in daily contact regarding ongoing work to review future options for maintaining access to and from the island after the present ship is withdrawn from service. I expect to consider a full report on this shortly.

Turkey

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what payments were made to Turkey in each of the last three years; for what purpose this money was paid; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: The following table sets out total British Government bilateral aid to Turkey.
	
		£000
		
			 Activity 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			 Ankara Gas Project 2,845 2,069 1,866 
			 Humanitarian Assistance 7 — — 
			 FCO Drugs and Crime Fund 648 231 210 
			 Total 3,140 2,300 2,076 
		
	
	The Ankara Gas Project represents the remaining contractual obligation to the Exports Credit Guarantee Department under the now defunct Aid and Trade Provision scheme (ATP). The project, which converted Ankara to natural gas usage, was completed in 1993; it was undertaken on commercial, but low-interest terms. DFID involvement under ATP was to fund the difference between commercial interest rates and the soft rate paid by the Turkish authorities. This was a 20-year arrangement and final interest payments will fall due in 2008.
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office also provides assistance under its Drugs and Crime Fund to assist local law enforcement agencies to combat the heroin trade in Turkey.
	In addition, the UK share of EC aid to Turkey was:
	
		
			 Calendar year £ million 
		
		
			 2001 26 
			 2002 17 
			 2003 19 
		
	
	This assistance was mainly targeted at support for Turkey's eventual accession to the EU.

Vietnam

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the work of his Department in Vietnam; and what relationship his Department has with the Government of Vietnam.

Mr. Gareth Thomas: The Vietnam Country Assistance Plan sets out the Department's priorities in Vietnam for the next two-three years: to promote the efficient, effective and equitable use of public financial resources; strengthen the Government's efforts to achieve development which benefits all social groups, and improve the accountability of Government to its citizens; to support economic transition from a planned to a market economy; and to promote greater effectiveness of the entire international development effort.
	DFID will contribute £20 million in poverty reduction budget support to the Government of Vietnam for the Poverty Reduction Strategy Credit (PRSC 3) in 2004. The PRSC supports a range of reforms across the areas of economic reform, governance and social sectors. DFID continues to support public financial management reform and the findings of a recent public expenditure review indicate concrete progress towards improving public financial management within the Government of Vietnam. To help combat corruption and waste in public resource management, DFID has provided technical training in performance auditing and planning and investment inspection. DFID has also helped to set up links between the National Assembly and UK Parliament, and our support to the National Assembly to strengthen its oversight function has helped increase the accountability of the Government.
	Regarding World Trade Organisation (WTO) accession, DFID has provided negotiation skills training to key officials, and supported analytical work to assist the Government understand the various accession options and their possible impacts on the poor. The Government of Vietnam's agreement with the European Union at the Asia/Europe meeting in October is a significant step towards Vietnam's goal of acceding to the WTO in 2005.
	DFID continues to play a strong role in primary education with a new professional competency framework that set standards for a more modern teaching force now being trialled. DFID has also supported work that led to a regulation on minimum quality standards in primary schools nationwide, and has supported districts to implement these standards. DFID support in the northern mountains has led to investment in roads, irrigation, village classrooms, commune health centres, and clean water schemes in six of the poorest provinces in Vietnam. Our continued support in transport means that DFID and World Bank resources are financing roads that link communes to markets in rural Vietnam. Alongside this support we are training people in rural road maintenance and distributing HIV education material in every commune. DFID is co-funding an HIV prevention initiative to distribute condoms to high-risk groups and providing information on HIV prevention and condom use through advertising campaigns on both radio and television.
	DFID remains at the forefront of making aid more effective in Vietnam. We have been working in partnership with the Japanese and others to promote the provision of aid through government systems. We are designing three aid instruments which will demonstrate how to channel finance direct to the poor without setting up parallel structures. This includes support for the Government of Vietnam's own poverty reduction targeted programmes that provide finance for schools, health centres, water and sanitation schemes for the poorest communes.
	DFID enjoys a very constructive dialogue with the Government of Vietnam on development issues as part of the UK's wider relationship. I have met a number of key Vietnamese Government interlocutors including the Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan in September 2003 who highlighted the value of DFID's assistance and welcomed the devolved presence of DFID staff. I have also met Minister Phuc of Planning and Investment, firstly in April this year, and again during the President of Vietnam's visit to the UK in May. Increasingly, my Department's development assistance to Vietnam is being directed through the Government's own administrative systems supported by actions to strengthen those systems and improve the focus on achieving positive results.
	DFID also supports poverty reduction in Vietnam through the European Commission, whose Vietnam programme focuses on human development and economic integration. The EC has committed to spend 78 million Euros (£55 million) in Vietnam in 2004, and is likely to spend 24 million Euros (£17 million) in 2005.

Water Supplies

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on water utility companies seeking prepayment for water supplies in developing countries.

Hilary Benn: Very few developing countries have chosen to implement prepayment mechanisms for water (South Africa being a notable exception), though many have done so for electricity and mobile phones. Experience so far indicates that these mechanisms require levels of technical sophistication and social sensitivity which can be very hard to achieve in poorest communities. The Department for International Development (DFID) aims to ensure that the poor benefit from improved water and sanitation services, through subsidies for the poorest if required.

TRANSPORT

Motoring Costs

John Burnett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his Department's estimate is of the average cost of motoring per mile including depreciation, fuel and servicing; what sources were used to make the estimate; what factors are included in the estimate; and when the estimate was last revised.

David Jamieson: holding answer 2 November 2004
	The estimated average cost of motoring per mile by car in 2002–03 was 39p for cars available to residents of households in Great Britain. This includes household expenditure on purchase, spares, repairs, insurance, taxation, fuel and parking, but excludes depreciation and costs paid by employers.
	The Expenditure and Food Survey for 2002–03 was used for estimates of household expenditure on motoring and the National Travel Survey for 2002–03 was used for estimates of mileage by car drivers for personal travel. The estimate was produced for the purpose of answering this question.

Air Navigation Services

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received on the draft Single European Sky Implementing Rule on a Common Charging Scheme for air navigation services from (a) regional airlines and representative bodies and (b) the general aviation industry and representative bodies; and what assessment he has made of the economic impact of the proposals on the (i) regional airline and (ii) general aviation industry.

Charlotte Atkins: The Department has received 75 written representations from regional airlines, general aviation and their representative bodies on the draft Single European Sky Implementing Rule for a common Charging Scheme for air navigation services.
	The Department has undertaken no formal assessment of the economic impact of the charging proposals as the detail of the Implementing Rule has not yet been finalised.

Air Safety

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how long it has taken to implement air safety recommendations made following each air safety incident since 1997.

Charlotte Atkins: The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) makes safety recommendations to a wide range of organisations including the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), overseas regulatory bodies, the new European Aviation Safety Agency, and aircraft and engine manufacturers.
	The CAA publishes its responses to relevant AAIB recommendations by means of a FACTOR (Follow-up Action on Occurrence Report), and progress on implementation is recorded in an annual Progress Report. Since 2000, the CAA Annual Progress Reports have also included information on recommendations made to other bodies, though information on these is less detailed. The progress reports are available on the CAA website.
	In the Annual Progress Report, recommendations addressed to the CAA will be classified as "open" or "closed". "Closed" indicates that all actions judged appropriate by the CAA have been completed or that the recommendation was not accepted by the CAA, and "open" indicates that action is on-going. In some instances further action may still be being progressed on closed recommendations by organisations outside the jurisdiction of the CAA. In these cases the CAA will continue to monitor progress as part of its normal regulatory activity.
	Since 1 January 1997 the AAIB has made a total of 537 recommendations, of which 260 have been made to the CAA. Of the 235 recommendations accepted or partially accepted by the CAA, 34 remain open as at 3 November 2004. These include one from 2000, two from 2001, two from 2002, 20 from 2003 and nine from 2004. The timescales for implementation of accepted recommendations by the CAA vary considerably, from immediate action to a number of years, depending upon the impact upon safety and any requirements for further research.

Air Safety

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  whether he has (a) contacted and (b) been contacted by (i) the European Aviation Safety Agency and (ii) other European certification agencies regarding failures in the winch manufactured by Hydrotechnics and used by the Aerophile Aerostat in the past five years;
	(2)  what representations he has (a) made to and (b) had from (i) the European Aviation Safety Agency and (ii) other European certification agencies concerning failures in any part of the Aerophile Aerostat in the past five years.

Charlotte Atkins: In the UK, aerostats (captive balloons) were exempt from any requirement for airworthiness certification prior to 28 September 2003, as explained in the answer of 6 October 2003, Official Report, columns 1057- 60W, given to the hon. Member. There was no reason for communications with any European certification body prior to that date.
	Since 28 September 2003, neither the Government nor the Civil Aviation Authority has had contacts with EASA or other European certification agencies regarding any failures in any part of the Aerophile Aerostat.

Air Safety

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what powers he has to revoke licences for airworthiness certificates for aerostats currently in operation in the UK whose certification came through Grandfather rights;
	(2)  what account the certifying authority takes of a track record of a proven aerostat system when considering applications for certification;
	(3)  which organisation is responsible for administering the process of aircraft type certification for applications made in respect of UK manufactured products; and which organisation makes the final decision on whether specific type certification should be granted in respect of an application from a UK manufacturer;
	(4)  what applications for type certifications (a) have been made, (b) are pending and (c) have been granted in respect of tethered gas balloons manufactured in the UK;
	(5)  whether the organisation responsible for processing the aircraft type certification is required to carry out technical studies of (a) the winch apparatus and (b) other components of the Aerostat system; and whether it is (i) entitled and (ii) otherwise permitted to accept third party attestations regarding such components from responsible bodies for the purposes of processing such certifications;
	(6)  whether he has ascertained from the European Aviation Safety Agency whether the Health and Safety Executive is deemed to be a responsible body for the purposes of safety accreditation such that its certification of winch apparatus may be deemed sufficient for the purposes of aircraft type certification;
	(7)  whether the Health and Safety Executive is deemed by the Civil Aviation Authority to be a responsible body for the purposes of safety accreditation of the winch apparatus forming part of an Aerostat system such that its certification may be deemed sufficient for the purposes of aircraft type certification;
	(8)  what steps Lindstrand Technologies Limited of Oswestry, Shropshire, should take in order to acquire the necessary certification allowing the sale of their HiFlyer Aerostat in (a) the UK and (b) the EU;
	(9)  what formal certification of specification has been promulgated for tethered gas balloons (aerostats); on what date it was promulgated; and by which organisation.

Charlotte Atkins: The historical background to the certification of aerostats (also known as gas balloons) is set out at length in the answer of 29 September 2003, Official Report, 6 October 2003 columns 1057–60W given to the hon. Member. This answer outlines the changes to the treatment of such aircraft that were brought about by EC Regulation 1592/2002 on common rules in the field of civil aviation and establishing a European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and related provisions for grandfather rights and transitional arrangements. EASA took up its certification responsibilities on 28 September 2003 and the necessary Commission Regulations detailing how these responsibilities are implemented are set down in Commission Regulations No. 1702/2003 and 2042/2003.
	Article 10(1) of EC Regulation 1592/2002 provides that member states may react immediately to a safety problem which involves a product subject to the provisions of that regulation; this would cover the revocation of a Certificate of Airworthiness for aerostats currently in operation in the UK whose certification came through grandfather rights.
	Prior to 28 September 2003, the CAA were responsible for both administering the process of aircraft type certification for UK products and made the final decision on granting the certification. Since that date, with some minor exceptions, these have been the responsibility of EASA.
	The only application to date for type certification for a UK manufactured tethered gas balloon has been for the Lindstrand HiFlyer (also known as the HiFlyer Aerostat) and was made on 9 September 2003. It is therefore subject to transitional arrangements whereby the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has continued to carry out the necessary certification exercise, which involves satisfying itself that the aircraft meets the applicable safety standards; its compliance findings would be deemed to have been made by the agency. The sale of this product in either the UK or the EU can be achieved by either continuing with and completing the current certification exercise through the CAA or by making a new application directly to EASA. The latter would also be likely to involve the CAA being asked to conduct the detailed certification work on behalf of the agency.
	Under the procedures which the CAA is currently following for certifying the HiFlyer, the authority is required to satisfy itself that both the winch apparatus and all other components of a tethered gas balloon/aerostat meet applicable safety standards. This requires specific work to be carried out to show that compliance with the requirements is achieved. If the aerostat had a proven positive track record prior to the application the CAA will note it, but it will not defray any compliance showing. If the proven track record is adverse, the CAA will assure itself during the process that the designer is addressing the issues.
	The formal certification specifications and processes have not yet been formally adopted and published by EASA. On 27 February 2003, the European Commission, through the auspices of the Central JAA, promulgated for comment a draft of a proposed certification specification and the CAA has been using these, in consultation with the agency, in order to progress the work on the HiFlyer,
	The draft certification processes provide that use can be made of third part attestations such as "expert body" accreditations of winches and ground equipments, but the agency has not yet defined how particular organisations should be accepted as "expert bodies". For this reason, neither the agency nor the CAA has been able to deem formally that the Health and Safety Executive is a responsible body for the purposes of safety accreditation of the winch apparatus forming part of an aerostat system. However, the authority is reviewing the existing HSE accreditation and if satisfied that compliance is shown with safety standards will be able to accept its findings as a suitable third party attestation. There is no obligation to accept such attestations.

Air Safety

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what reports he has received from certification agencies (a) in the UK and (b) elsewhere in the world concerning failures with the HiFlyer Aerostat manufactured by Lindstrand Technologies Ltd of Oswestry, Shropshire.

Charlotte Atkins: None.

British Transport Police

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to make a decision on the capital funding for the British Transport Police for 2005–06; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: Capital funding for the British Transport Police for 2005–06 is under consideration as part of the detailed allocation of the Department's Spending Review 2004 Settlement. Regular meetings have been held between the Department and the BTP to discuss this matter and we expect to be in a position to let the BTP know shortly the sum of their capital funding.

Buses

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the main causes of delay caused to bus services by (a) traffic congestion, (b) in-service mechanical failure and (c) fleet management.

Charlotte Atkins: Information on the causes of delays to bus services is not collected. However, data on bus mileage lost because of traffic congestion, mechanical problems and staffing problems are collected from bus operators. The results of this survey are published in the quarterly Bus Quality Indicators Bulletin, which is available in the House of Commons Library. In the latest quarter, the percentage losses of mileage for English bus services were 0.4 per cent. (traffic congestion), 0.4 per cent. (mechanical problems) and 0.4 per cent. (staffing problems).

Car Registrations

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many suppliers of car registration plates have been registered since January 2003; how many have been subject to investigation due to concerns about their probity; and what action has resulted from such investigations.

David Jamieson: As of 29 October 2004, there were 30,869 registered businesses operating from 37,466 retail outlets.
	The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) responds to complaints about possible breaches of the regulations by writing to the supplier concerned and also to the appropriate trading standards office. DVLA has appointed three full-time enforcement officers who make follow-up visits where a supplier's procedures are in doubt. Cases where vehicle ringing is suspected are reported to the police.
	There have been three prosecutions, all leading to convictions with fines totalling £1,600 plus costs. The police have also issued a number of cautions.

Child Accidents

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many children died in road accidents in the Greater London area during the last 12 months.

David Jamieson: There were 12 Child (under 16 years of age) road accident fatalities in the Greater London area during 2003, the last full year for which figures are available.

Civil Servants

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average length of continuous service for civil servants within the Department is.

Charlotte Atkins: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 3 November 2004, Official Report, column 268W, by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office. In addition, the Marine and Coastguard Agency has an average length of service of 8.92 years.

Consultants

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many consultancy firms or companies have been retained by the Department since June 2001; what the projects are for which each has been retained; and what the total is of the fees paid or incurred in each case.

Charlotte Atkins: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 3 November 2004, Official Report, column 251W given to the hon. Member for Stratford-on-Avon (Mr. Maples)

Consultants

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has spent in each year since 2002 on employing external consultants to deal with the press and public relations of his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Charlotte Atkins: The Department uses Public Relations contractors primarily to promote our THINK! road safety and sustainable travel campaign messages to the public through print and broadcast media. In the current year we are also using a PR contractor to help publicise the benefits to the public of our Transport Direct website, which has been introduced to provide integrated travel information. Our aim is to raise awareness of our safety and travel messages and extend the reach of public service campaigns through features and promotions. Costs in financial years 2002–03 and 2003–04 were £496,004 and £347,666 respectively.

Crossrail

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will meet the Romford Crossrail Action Group to discuss concerns about Crossrail.

Tony McNulty: Ministers have no current plans to meet the Romford Crossrail Action Group. Cross London Rail Links Ltd. (CLRLL) have undertaken two separate rounds of consultation on the Crossrail scheme, providing the opportunity for interested parties to register their views. In the course of their consultation, CLRLL have met with the Romford Crossrail Action Group and other concerned local parties on a number of occasions. The Group's views will be considered by CLRLL along with all those received through the consultation.

Departmental Staff

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many full-time equivalent jobs (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies had in (i) Yorkshire and the Humber and (ii) the City of York in (A) 1997 and (B) the latest year for which figures are available.

Charlotte Atkins: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 25 October 2004, Official Report, column 1053W, by my hon. Friend, the Minister for the Cabinet Office. In addition, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) currently has a total of 65 full-time equivalent posts located at its Bridlington, Beverley and satellite offices. MCA does not have offices in the City of York.
	In 1997, the work currently undertaken by the MCA was the responsibility of the Marine Safety Agency (MSA) and The Coastguard Agency (TCA). Both agencies merged in April 1998 to form the MCA. Given the existence of the two agencies at that time, we are unable to confirm figures for 1997. However, it is unlikely there has been any significant variation at either of the offices in question since 1997.

Disabled Parking Bays

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions his Department has had with Greater London local authorities on the provision of disabled parking bays.

Charlotte Atkins: The Department has not held discussions with local authorities specifically on the provision of such bays. Advice has been issued to local authorities in Traffic Advisory leaflet 5/95 on the provision of disabled person's parking bays and officials are available to advise on issues raised by local authorities and others with an interest. Copies of the leaflet have been placed in the Libraries of the House.
	Generally, The Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 gives a wide range of powers to local authorities to provide parking places, including designated bays for disabled people. The decision to provide a bay is ultimately for the local authority.

Emissions

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what work has been undertaken to reduce emissions around Heathrow airport.

Charlotte Atkins: As a condition of the planning permission for Terminal 5, BAA plc is required to produce and keep under review an action plan that sets out how it intends to minimise emissions from Heathrow airport. The "Air Quality Strategy and Action Plan 2001–2006" is available from BAA's website (www.baa.com). The airport also lies within an Air Quality Management Area declared by the London boroughs of Hillingdon and Hounslow and Spelthorne borough council. In accordance with the duties placed upon them by the Environment Act 1995, these authorities are now preparing air quality action plans, identifying the steps that will be taken in pursuit of UK air quality objectives.

Emissions

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from road traffic.

David Jamieson: The Transport White Paper ("The Future of Transport: a network for 2030"), published in July 2004 and available via the Department for Transport's website, summarised in some detail the main steps the Government is taking to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide from road transport. The review of the climate change programme, on which the Government is due to publish a consultation document very shortly, will consider the scope for additional measures to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from the transport sector and other sectors.

Ferry Services

Brian Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list those ferry services operating within UK domestic waters for which onshore ticketing (a) is mandatory and (b) is to become mandatory.

David Jamieson: Ticketing arrangements are a matter for commercial decision and there are no ferry services operating within UK domestic waters for which onshore ticketing is mandatory. However, improvements to the security of some domestic ferry services have been sought by my Department since March 2003. The introduction of onshore ticketing is, in some cases, part of the response to the need for such improvement. No decision has been taken on future legal requirements.

Government Powers

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what powers he can seek to exercise with EU agreement to prevent the transportation of commercial cargoes within the territorial waters of EU member states.

David Jamieson: Agreement by EU institutions is not relevant to the exercise of powers of the Secretary of State in relation to the territorial waters of EU Member States. We would not wish to intervene in the waters of other Member States, and the position as regards those of the United Kingdom is set out in my answer of 19 October to the hon. Gentleman's earlier question Official Report, column 608W.

Noise (Environmental Pollution)

Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which agencies are responsible for monitoring noise and environmental pollution at motorway service stations.

David Jamieson: Motorway service areas are operated privately. The local planning authority, who in general will have approved the development at a site, is responsible for monitoring noise and environmental pollution at an individual service area. The Environment Agency may monitor the releases to foul sewer or surface waters from an MSA, depending on the size of the releases.

Noise (Environmental Pollution)

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what studies have been undertaken to determine the noise effects of mixed mode runway operation at Heathrow.

Charlotte Atkins: Analysis of the noise impacts of a variety of possible mixed mode scenarios is set out in a supporting document to "The Future of Air Transport" White Paper entitled "ERCD Report 0308: Revised Future Aircraft Noise Exposure Estimates for UK Airports". This is available from DfT's website (www.dft.gov.uk). Further analysis of the potential for mixed mode operations at Heathrow is being taken forward as part of the Project for the Sustainable Development of Heathrow. "The Future of Air Transport" makes clear that further development of Heathrow will only be considered on the basis that it results in no net increase in the total area of the 57dBA noise contour compared with summer 2002 (an area of 127km 2 ). It also commits the Government to public consultation ahead of any introduction of mixed mode operations at Heathrow.

Rail Freight

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many staff have been employed to inspect and search rail freight in each year since 2001.

Tony McNulty: Security standards for domestic rail freight are set out in the National Railways Security Programme (NRSP) (dated June 2004). This document is issued to Network Rail, TOCs and others (Freight Operating Companies) with direct involvement in railway security. The document details both mandatory and best practice standards for the industry.
	International rail freight via the channel tunnel or UK ports is liable to security checks.
	The Department does not hold information on the number of staff required to meet these requirements.

Railways

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what percentage change from the 2003 base he anticipates for (a) rail passenger mileage and (b) rail freight mileage by (i) 2008, (ii) 2013, (iii) 2018 and (iv) 2023.

Tony McNulty: The SRA in their Strategic Plan 2003 forecast an increase in rail passenger mileage from 2000–01 to 2010–11 of between 25 per cent. and 35 per cent. Copies of this are available in the Libraries of the House. No forecasts of changes in rail freight mileage have been made.

Railways

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the current level of debt of (a) Network Rail and (b) the Strategic Rail Authority is.

Tony McNulty: This information may be found in Network Rail Limited Annual Report and Accounts 2004 and the Strategic Rail Authority Annual Report and Accounts 2003–04, copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.

Sea Containers

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many sea containers arriving at each British sea port have been (a) inspected and (b) searched in each year since 2001.

John Healey: I have been asked to reply.
	Information is not held in the format requested. A breakdown could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Strategic Rail Authority

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much he expects the Strategic Rail Authority to have cost from its inception to its abolition.

Alistair Darling: It is estimated that the Strategic Rail Authority and its subsidiary organisation will have incurred about £237 million of running costs between its establishment on 1 February 2001 and its winding up.

Transport White Paper

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has (a) to issue additional guidance and (b) to amend the guidelines for the implementation of quality contracts document following the 2004 Transport White Paper.

Charlotte Atkins: The draft guidance which the Department issued for consultation in June will be updated to take account of matters raised in the "Future of Transport" White Paper so far as they can be achieved without new primary legislation.
	"The Future of Rail" put forward a proposal to make it easier for Passenger Transport Executives to create quality contracts, where this is part of a strategy which involves replacing some rail services with bus services. This requires primary legislation amending the Transport Act 2000. The guidance will be further amended in the event of such legislation being enacted.

Vehicle Excise Duty

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many vehicles are licensed in each of the vehicle excise duty bands; and what the total revenue from each band was in the last period for which figures are available.

Charlotte Atkins: The information requested is as follows:
	
		
			 Vehicle Category Number of Vehicles Vehicle Excise Duty Gross £ million 
		
		
			 Private and light goods 28,364,279 4,442,725,639 
			 Motorcycles, scooters and mopeds 1,042,148 45,635,309 
			 Public Transport 97,954 29,623,173 
			 Heavy goods 428,906 276,967,418 
			 Others 80,846 12,125,195 
			 Crown and exempt 1,910,859 0 
			 Total 31,924,992 4,817,879,350

Zero-emission Trams

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the potential for tackling climate change from the introduction of zero emission fuel cell powered light trams; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The Department for Transport has not made any detailed assessment of the potential for fuel cell powered light trams to tackle climate change. The extent to which such vehicles would deliver carbon savings would depend, among other things, on how the hydrogen for the fuel cell was produced, distributed and stored. The cost of delivering these carbon savings would need to be considered against the costs of delivering similar carbon savings from other sectors. The review of the Government's climate change programme, on which a consultation document is due to be published shortly, will consider the scope for securing additional carbon savings from the transport sector and other sectors.

TREASURY

Accountancy Standards

David Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what regulatory powers are available to the Financial Services Authority to uphold standards in (a) international accountancy and (b) international financial consultancy.

Stephen Timms: The FSA has no direct powers to uphold standards in international accountancy.
	The FSA can take enforcement action against listed issuers who publish annual reports and accounts which breach the listing rule requirements regarding the making of misleading, false or deceptive announcements under listing rule 9.3A.
	The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has principal responsibility for oversight of audit. The Government intends to delegate this oversight role to the Professional Oversight Board for Accountancy of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) early in 2005. The FRC has responsibilities for setting, monitoring and enforcing auditing and accounting standards and overseeing the regulatory activities of the professional accountancy bodies.
	With regard to international financial consultancy, unless the activity constitutes a regulated activity under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, the FSA has no locus in this area.

Average Earnings

Simon Hughes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average earnings were of full-time employees in (a) the North Southwark and Bermondsey constituency, (b) the Camberwell and Peckham constituency and (c) the Dulwich and West Norwood constituency in (i) April 1997, (ii) April 2001, (iii) April 2002, (iv) April 2003 and (v) April 2004.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 28 October 2004
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Simon Hughes, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what the average earnings for full time employees were in (a) the North Southwark and Bermondsey constituency, (b) the Camberwell and Peckham constituency and (c) the Dulwich and West Norwood constituency in (i) April 1997, (ii) April 2001, (iii) April 2002, (iv) April 2003 and (v) April 2004. (194309)
	Average earnings are estimated from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) and are provided for full-time employees on adult rates of pay whose pay was unaffected by absence during the pay period, by their place of work. This is the standard definition used for ASHE tables. The ASHE does not collect data on the self employed and people who do unpaid work.
	I attach a table showing the average gross weekly wage for full time employees in the North Southwark and Bermondsey constituency, the Camberwell and Peckham constituency and the Dulwich and West Norwood constituency for 2001 to 2004.
	Data for 1997 is currently only available from a different survey which is discontinuous with the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE). Data from ASHE will not be available until later 2004 following a QA process.
	The ASHE, carried out in April of each year, is the most comprehensive source of earnings information in the United Kingdom. It is a one per cent sample of all employees who are members of pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) schemes, but because of its sampling frame, it has difficulty capturing data on people with very low pay. It is therefore likely to under-represent relatively low paid staff earning below the tax threshold.
	The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings publication criteria ensures that all estimates are undisclosive. A number of estimates have been removed from the published tables for these reasons.
	
		Median gross weekly earnings for North Southwark and Bermondsey, Camberwell and Peckham and Dulwich and West Norwood, 2001–04
		
			  2001 2002 2003 2004 exc 2004 inc 
			 Constituency Median (£) CV% 1 Median (£) CV% 1 Median (£) CV% 1 Median (£) CV% 1 Median (£) CV% 1 
		
		
			 North Southwark and Bermondsey 591.0 2.6 599.7 2.5 631.0 3.6 596.7 4.3 596.7 4.3 
			 Camberwell and Peckham 457.3 11.0 467.1 12.0 482.1 13.0 455.9 12.1 457.5 10.0 
			 Dulwich and West Norwood 408.2 9.1 365.1 7.3 360.6 9.9 371.7 11.0 362.8 12.0 
		
	
	Data Source:
	Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, ONS
	
		Mean gross weekly earnings for North Southwark and Bermondsey, Camberwell and Peckham and Dulwich and West Norwood, 2001–04
		
			  2001 2002 2003 2004 exc 2004 inc 
			 Constituency Mean (£) CV% 1 Mean (£) CV% 1 Mean (£) CV% 1 Mean (£) CV% 1 Mean (£) CV% 1 
		
		
			 North Southwark and Bermondsey 637.9 2.1 644.9 2.3 685.7 2.0 698.6 2.9 693.3 2.8 
			 Camberwell and Peckham 495.8 5.2 510.5 6.1 537.0 8.3 533.2 8.8 520.9 8.0 
			 Dulwich and West Norwood 464.7 9.6 410.3 7.0 426.0 8.3 439.3 8.0 428.6 8.7 
		
	
	(7) Key to quality:
	Precise: CV} 5%, reasonably precise: CV> 5% and } 10%, Acceptable: CV > 10% and } 20%
	Notes:
	Data for 1997 is currently only available from a different survey which is discontinuous with the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE). Data from ASHE will not be available until later 2004 following a QA process.
	The table provides data on the average gross weekly earnings for full time employees on adult rates of pay whose pay for the pay period was unaffected by absence, who worked in North Southwark and Bermondsey, Camberwell and Peckham and Dulwich or West Norwood, for the years 2001 to 2004.
	The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, (ASHE), carried out in April of each year, is the most comprehensive source of earnings information in the United Kingdom. It is a one per cent sample of all employees who are members of pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) schemes.
	The ASHE replaces the New Earnings Survey (NES) from October 2004. The main difference between the ASHE and NES being that estimates are weighted to population totals from the Labour Force Survey.
	Gross weekly earnings for Adult Full-Time Employees whose pay for the survey period was not affected by absence.
	ASHE results for 2004 have been produced on 2 separate basis. Firstly a similar basis to 2003 for comparison purposes labelled as 2004exc and also including a range of new supplementary surveys designed to improve the coverage labelled 2004inc, which is our best estimates of the level of earnings in 2004.
	Data Source:
	Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, ONS

Average Earnings

Keith Vaz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the latest figures are for average earnings of (a) women and (b) men in the UK.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Keith Vaz, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question what the latest figures are for average earnings of (a) women and (b) men in the UK. (196018).
	Average earnings are estimated from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings and are provided for full-time employees on adult rates of pay whose pay was unaffected by absence during the pay period, by their place of work. This is the standard definition used for Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings tables. The survey does not collect data on the self-employed and people who do unpaid work.
	The median gross weekly earnings in 2004 for women was £358.0 and £462.0 for men. The mean gross weekly earnings in 2004 for women was £420.2 and £556.8 for men.
	This data is available on the statistics web site: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/STATBASE/Product.asp?vlnk=13101.
	The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, carried out in April of each year, is the most comprehensive source of earnings information in the United Kingdom. It is a one per cent sample of all employees who are members of pay-as-you-earn schemes, but because of its sampling frame, it has difficulty capturing data on people with very low pay. It is therefore likely to under-represent relatively low paid staff earning below the tax threshold.
	The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings publication criteria ensures that all estimates are undisclosive. A number of estimates have been removed from the published tables for these reasons.

Cancer Statistics

Tom Cox: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) men and (b) women died of cancer in England and Wales in the last 12 months.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Tom Cox, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many (a) men and (b) women died of cancer in England and Wales in the last 12 months. (195926)
	The latest year for which data are available is 2003. Figures on the numbers of deaths due to cancer are shown in the table below for that year.
	
		Number of deaths where the underlying cause of death was cancer(8) by sex in England and Wales, 2003 2
		
			  All ages Aged 15 and over 
		
		
			 (a) Males 70,814 70,663 
			 (b) Females 65,141 65,010 
		
	
	(8) The cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes C00-C97.
	(9) Number of deaths occurring in the calendar year.

Data Protection

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what procedures are in place (a) to check the criminal records of civil servants in his Department and agencies responsible to his Department, including the Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise, who have access to computer databases containing confidential information on the public and (b) to ensure that there can be no improper use of computer databases containing confidential information on the public; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: The Chancellor's Departments and agencies have systems in place to ensure that appropriate character and security checks are carried out prior to unconditional offers of employment being made. Security clearance procedures are carried out in line with Cabinet Office guidance and reviewed at regular intervals. All staff are made aware of their obligation to maintain the confidentiality of data and information and that any misuse of departmental systems, or failure to follow established security procedures or policies, may lead to disciplinary action. Procedures are in place for serving staff to report any convictions.

Departmental IT

Brian White: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the Department's (a) implemented and (b) planned computer systems use open source software; and what plans are in place to raise this level.

Stephen Timms: The use of open source software is below1 per cent. in both implemented and planned computer systems. Treasury, Customs and Revenue, follow the Government's published policy, considering open source solutions alongside proprietary ones in IT procurements, and awarding contracts on a value for money basis. The policy can be viewed at the UK Govtalk website.

Departmental Staff

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many agency temporary staff have been working for the Department in each of the last five years, excluding those working for agencies for which no data is kept centrally.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 4 November 2004
	The Chancellor's Departments do not keep central records of agency staff employed; only staff on the Departments' payrolls are recorded.
	The Chancellor's Departments use agency staff where this is the most cost-effective way of filling a vacancy in the short-term.

Economically Inactive People

Michael Wills: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the number of economically inactive (a) males and (b) females aged (i) 40 to 49 and (ii) 50 to 59; and what estimate he has made of the number of economically inactive males aged 60 to 65.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Colin Mowl to Mr. Michael Wills, dated 8 November 2004
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about economic inactivity. (196032)
	The attached table gives the latest estimates of the number of economically inactive people by age and gender resident in the United Kingdom for the three months ending August 2004.
	These estimates from the Labour Force Survey are, as with any sample survey, subject to sampling variability.
	
		People economically inactive(10), United Kingdom, three months ending in August 2004 not seasonally adjusted -- Thousand
		
			 Age Men Women 
		
		
			 40–49 363 882 
			 50–59 676 1,211 
			 60–65 838 — 
		
	
	1 Refers to people who are neither in employment nor unemployed.
	Source:
	ONS: Labour Force Survey.

Economically Inactive People

David Davis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were unemployed in Haltemprice and Howden in (a) the last month for which figures are available and (b) each of the preceding 12 months.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. David Davis, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about unemployment. (194961)
	Estimates from the Labour Force Survey for the twelve-month period ending in February 2003 show that there were 1,000 residents aged 16 and over in the Haltemprice and Howden Parliamentary Constituency who were unemployed. The corresponding figure for the twelve-month period ending in February 2002 was also 1,000.
	The unemployment estimates are based on small sample sizes and are therefore subject to a high degree of sampling variability. They should therefore be treated with caution.
	The Office for National Statistics also compiles statistics of those claiming Jobseeker's Allowance for local areas including Parliamentary Constituencies. The attached table gives the number of people resident in the Haltemprice and Howden Parliamentary Constituency claiming Jobseeker's Allowance benefits for September 2004 and each of the preceding 12 months. The data are not seasonally adjusted.
	
		JSA claimants in the Haltemprice and Howden parliamentary constituency (not seasonally adjusted)
		
			 Date Level 
		
		
			 September 2003 766 
			 October 2003 719 
			 November 2003 733 
			 December 2003 734 
			 January 2004 812 
			 February 2004 783 
			 March 2004 770 
			 April 2004 743 
			 May 2004 687 
			 June 2004 654 
			 July 2004 660 
			 August 2004 675 
			 September 2004 647 
		
	
	Source:
	Jobcentre Plus administrative system

Economic Statistics

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many full-time equivalent jobs (a) his Department and (b) its Executive agencies had in (i) Yorkshire and the Humber and (ii) the City of York in (A) 1997 and (B) the latest year for which figures are available.

Stephen Timms: The number of full-time equivalent jobs in the Debt Management Office and the Office of Government Commerce in Yorkshire and the Humber is published in "Civil Service Statistics" which is available in the Library, and at www.civil-service.gov.uk/statistics.
	The number of full-time equivalent jobs in the Debt Management Office and the Office of Government Commerce in the City of York can be found in the following table.
	
		
			 Department/agency 1997 Current 
		
		
			 Debt Management Office 0 0 
			 Office of Government Commerce n/a 1 
		
	
	For all other Chancellor's Departments, I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 25 October 2004, Official Report, column 1053W.

Economic Statistics

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many jobs were lost in (a) Manchester Central constituency, (b) the City of Manchester, (c) Greater Manchester and (d) the North West in each of the last 10 years.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 1 November 2004
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Tony Lloyd, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about jobs lost in Manchester Central, City of Manchester, Greater Manchester and the North West. (195168)
	While statistics of jobs lost are not available explicitly, statistics from surveys enable comparisons to be made of net changes in numbers of jobs from year to year.
	The attached table shows the information available. The latest year available is 2002. Data comparable to this are available back to 1995.
	
		Number of employee jobs(10) with workplace in Manchester Central, City of Manchester, Greater Manchester and North West—1995 to 2002 -- Thousand
		
			  Manchester Central 2 City of Manchester(11) Greater Manchester(11) North West 
		
		
			 Number of employee jobs  
			 1995 150 258 1,029 2,615 
			 1996 145 251 1,054 2,645 
			 1997 158 266 1,061 2,701 
			 1998 158 268 1,071 2,789 
			 1999 166 281 1,117 2,841 
			 2000 171 286 1,122 2,846 
			 2001 175 293 1,130 2,895 
			 2002 194 314 1,152 2,974 
			 Year on year change(12)  
			 1996 -5 -7 25 30 
			 1997 13 14 8 56 
			 1998 0 2 9 88 
			 1999 8 13 46 52 
			 2000 5 5 5 5 
			 2001 4 7 9 49 
			 2002 18 21 21 79 
		
	
	(10) Excludes self-employed jobs.
	(11) These figures are aggregates from which agriculture class 0100 (1992 SIC) have been excluded.
	(12) The year on year change from 1995 to 2002 change has been rounded to the nearest thousand separately from rounded levels for 1995 to 2002.
	Source:
	1995–1997 rescaled Annual Employment Survey; 1998–2002 Annual Business Inquiry

Fair trade

Paul Burstow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether it is his policy to ensure that hospitality within his Department is sourced from fair trade producers wherever possible within the boundaries set by the public procurement rules.

Stephen Timms: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. Bercow) on 8 December 2003, Official Report, column 335W.

GDP (Manufacturing)

Eric Illsley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of gross domestic product was comprised of the manufacturing sector in (a) 1997 and (b) the last year for which figures are available.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Colin Mowl to Mr. Eric Illsley, dated 8 November 2004
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning what percentage of gross domestic product was comprised of the manufacturing sector in (a) 1997 and (b) the last year for which figures are available. I am replying in his absence. (197006)
	The manufacturing sector comprised 21.2 per cent. of gross value added (GVA) in 1997. The latest year for which fully reconciled figures are available is 2002, when manufacturing comprised 15.9 per cent. of GVA.
	The contribution of industries to the economy is normally shown by their contribution to GVA. The difference between GVA and gross domestic product is taxes less subsidies on products (e.g. VAT, excise duties) which cannot be allocated across industries.

Gershon Review

Kate Hoey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on management consultants employed in connection with the Gershon Review.

Paul Boateng: The Efficiency Review Team, led by Sir Peter Gershon, drew on a wide range of experience and expertise from both the public and private sectors and identified efficiency savings of over £20 billion. A number of management consultants provided advice during the Review, many of whom were made available to Sir Peter's team at no charge. A number of consultants' services were paid for at a cost of approximately £595,000 for the 11-month period of the Review.

Gun Deaths

Keith Vaz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in the UK have died from gunshot wounds in each of the last 10 years.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Keith Vaz, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many people in the UK have died from gunshot wounds in each of the last 10 years. (196007)
	The most recently available information is for deaths in 2003. Figures for deaths from firearms are shown in the table below for the calendar years 1994 to 2003.
	
		Number of deaths from firearms injury(13), United Kingdom, 1994 to 2003 2
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1994 341 
			 1995 358 
			 1996 254 
			 1997 201 
			 1998 203 
			 1999 210 
			 2000 204 
			 2001 167 
			 2002 169 
			 2003 163 
		
	
	(13) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes E922, E955.0-E955.4, E965.0-E965.4, E985.0-E985.4 and E970 from 1994 to 2000 and the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes W32-W34, X72-X74, X93-X95, Y22-Y24 and Y35.0 from 2001 onwards.
	(14) Data for England and Wales are for deaths occurring in the calendar year (which were registered before the release of the routine annual publication). Data for Scotland and Northern Ireland are for deaths registered in the calendar year.

Household Incomes

Michael Wills: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when data will be available for the number of Households Below Average Income in each ward in each constituency.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Colin Mowl to Mr. Michael Wills, dated 8 November 2004
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question asking when data will be available for the number of Households Below Average Income in each ward in each constituency. I am replying in his absence. (196372).
	Estimates for income by constituency are not available but ONS have recently published experimental ward-based average household income estimates (although these do not provide an income distribution within the ward). They cover England and Wales for 1998/99. These estimates have been developed specifically for small areas where traditional survey methods do not capture sufficient data. They have been produced using a modelling approach that enables survey data to be combined with Census and administrative data to estimate at the small area level. We advise against combining the ward level estimates to constituencies or other higher levels. The best estimates for these higher levels may require different methods or statistical models.
	These model-based estimates are of a different nature from standard survey estimates because they are dependent upon correctly specifying the relationship between weekly household income and the census/administrative information. The main limitation of estimates for small areas, either those estimated directly from responses to surveys or model-based, is that they are subject to variability. We have also produced the confidence intervals associated with the model-based estimates in order to make the accuracy of the estimates clear.
	These estimates are described in more detail on the National Statistics website at: http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/ShowMetaData.asp?tn=Product&id=5060 and are available at http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/NoHSubject.asp?SID= 3BAB80A42E8941369E910AE3325975A9&B=True&E=4,0#4,0
	We are doing research into developing other estimates of income distribution for small areas.
	DWP's annual publication Households Below Average Income (HBAI) is sourced from the Family Resources Survey (FRS), and gives information on the location of individuals on the income distribution.
	The publication presents results covering Great Britain for children, working-age adults pensioners, and all individuals in separate chapters but due to small sample sizes only shows results by geographic area disaggregated by Government Office Region. One set of tables presented in the publication show the proportion of individuals that fall below various low income thresholds. The current FRS series spans the years 1994/5—2002/03. The next publication showing results for 2003/04 is scheduled for March 2005.

Imported Primates

Tony Banks: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many illegally imported primates were seized by HM Customs and Excise in the last five years, broken down by species.

John Healey: Customs has made the following seizures of imported primates in each of the past five years:
	
		
			 Item seized Number Common name Latin name 
		
		
			 1999
			 Live animals 6 Mona monkeys Cercopithecus mona 
			 Live animals 6 Spot nosed monkeys Cercopithecus Spp 
			 Cooked monkey 1 Patas monkey Erythrocebus patas 
			 Parts of monkey 8 Not known Not known 
			 
			 2000
			 Live animal 1 Gibbon Hylobates Spp 
			 Live animal 1 Lesser white nosed monkey Cercopithecus petaurista 
			 Live animal 1 Golden cheeked gibbon Hylobates gabriellae 
			 Smoked monkeys 11 Not known Not known 
			 
			 2001
			 — — — — 
			 
			 2002
			 Dried monkey 1 Not known Not known 
			 Monkey tail 1 Not known Not known 
			 Baboon skull 1 Not known Not known 
			 
			 2003
			 Baboon skulls 3 Hamadryas baboon Papio hamadryas 
			 Monkey skulls 4 Not known Cercopithecus Spp 
			 Monkey skull 1 Not known Not known 
		
	
	This information is included in the seizures report that Customs provide to the CITES Secretariat for publication.
	Customs has also made a number of seizures under its enforcement responsibilities regarding products of animal origin, and some of these may have included meat from primates.

Influenza

David Davis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people aged 65 years or over died of influenza in (a) the East Riding of Yorkshire, (b) Hull and (c) England in each year since 2001.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. David Davis, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many people aged 65 years or over have died of influenza in (a) East Riding of Yorkshire, (b) Hull, (c) the UK in each year since 2001. (194979)
	Figures for East Riding of Yorkshire and Kingston upon Hull, (City of) unitary authorities and the United Kingdom are provided in the table.
	
		Numbers of deaths from influenza(15), 2001 to 2003 2 for East Riding of Yorkshire and Kingston upon Hull, (City of) unitary authorities and the United Kingdom(17)
		
			  East Riding of Yorkshire Kingston upon Hull, City of United Kingdom 
		
		
			 2001 (18)—; (18)—; 27 
			 2002 (18)—; (18)—; 34 
			 2003 (18)—; (18)—; 64 
		
	
	(15) Deaths with an underlying cause of influenza defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes J10 and J11.
	(16) Figures are for deaths occurring in each calendar year, except for data for Scotland and Northern Ireland included in the United Kingdom totals. These are deaths registered in each calendar year.
	(17) Deaths of usual residents of these areas.
	(18) Fewer than five deaths.

Job Creation (Dagenham)

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many jobs have been created in the Dagenham constituency since (a) 1997 and (b) 2001.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Colin Mowl to Mr. Jon Cruddas, dated 8 November 2004
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about jobs created in the Dagenham constituency. I am replying in his absence. (196453)
	While statistics of new jobs created are not available explicitly, statistics from surveys enable comparisons to be made of net changes in numbers of jobs from year to year.
	The attached table shows the information requested, relating to jobs in Dagenham for 1997, 2001 and 2002, which is the latest year available.
	
		Number of employee jobs(19) with workplace in Dagenham parliamentary constituency; 1997, 2001 and 2002
		
			  Total 
		
		
			 Number  
			 1997 26,400 
			 2001 23,200 
			 2002 21,900 
			   
			 Change(20)  
			 1997 to 2002 -4,400 
			 2001 to 2002 -1,300 
		
	
	(19) Excludes self-employed jobs.
	(20) The 1997 to 2002 change and 2001 to 2002 change has been rounded to the nearest hundred separately from rounded levels for 1997, 2001 and 2002.
	Source:
	1997 rescaled Annual Employment Survey; 2001–02 Annual Business Inquiry

Oil and Gas (Windfall Tax)

Alan Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will assess the case for a windfall tax on profits accruing to UK gas and oil producers as a result of recent and future oil price increases; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: All taxes are kept under review on a Budget by Budget basis. The Government are committed to delivering a tax regime for the North Sea which promotes investment and takes a fair share of revenue derived from a national resource.

Older Workers

David Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 7 September 2004, Official Report, column 1195W, on older workers, if he will break down the figures provided by (a) gender and (b) age.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. David Willetts, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about older workers broken down by gender and age. (194833)
	The attached table gives estimates of the number of people above state pension age in employment and resident in the United Kingdom for the three months ending in May each year from 1992 to 2004.
	These estimates from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) are, as with any statistical sample survey, subject to sampling variability.
	
		Number of people above state pension age(21) in employment—United Kingdom—three months ending in May each year from 1992 to 2004—not seasonally adjusted -- Thousand
		
			  60–64(22) 65–69 70–74 75+ Total 65 and over (men) and 60 and over (women) 
		
		
			 All persons
			 1992 338 286 125 68 818 
			 1993 347 261 111 55 774 
			 1994 357 269 101 56 782 
			 1995 350 276 118 52 797 
			 1996 352 261 107 52 773 
			 1997 374 271 104 57 805 
			 1998 334 291 93 60 778 
			 1999 354 301 108 56 819 
			 2000 372 289 110 60 831 
			 2001 397 274 101 46 818 
			 2002 408 319 103 55 885 
			 2003 405 352 104 69 930 
			 2004 453 361 127 52 993 
			   
			 Men  
			 1992 — 176 79 46 301 
			 1993 — 154 67 35 255 
			 1994 — 164 63 37 264 
			 1995 — 179 75 35 288 
			 1996 — 158 71 37 266 
			 1997 — 162 68 39 269 
			 1998 — 179 57 37 274 
			 1999 — 182 71 35 288 
			 2000 — 176 72 40 287 
			 2001 — 172 64 31 267 
			 2002 — 193 64 35 291 
			 2003 — 220 69 50 339 
			 2004 — 227 76 35 338 
			   
			 Women  
			 1992 338 110 46 22 517 
			 1993 347 108 44 20 518 
			 1994 357 104 38 19 518 
			 1995 350 98 43 18 509 
			 1996 352 103 36 15 507 
			 1997 374 109 36 18 536 
			 1998 334 111 36 22 504 
			 1999 354 119 36 21 531 
			 2000 372 113 38 20 544 
			 2001 397 102 37 15 552 
			 2002 408 126 40 20 594 
			 2003 405 132 35 19 591 
			 2004 453 134 51 17 655 
		
	
	'—' = No data available
	(21) This refers to men aged 65 and over and women aged 60 and over.
	(22) Figures are based on women only as men in this age group are below pension age.
	Source:
	ONS Labour Force Survey

Pensioners

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many households in England are (a) single occupation with one pensioner, (b) occupied by two pensioners and no other adults and (c) occupied by pensioners only.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mrs. Caroline Spelman, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many households in England are (a) single occupation with one pensioner, (b) occupied by two pensioners and no other adults and (c) occupied by pensioners only. (195251)
	The table shows the number of exclusively pensioner households in England on Census day (29 April 2001), with special attention to one and two pensioner households. The figures have been extracted from Table T08 on the CD supplement to the Census 2001 National Report for England and Wales, which is available in the House of Commons Library.
	
		Number of exclusively pensioner households in England on Census day, 29 April 2001
		
			 Pensioner households(23) All households 
		
		
			 One pensioner household 2,939,465 
			 Two pensioner household 1,891,401 
			 All pensioner household 4,848,304 
		
	
	(23) Pensionable Age is 65 and over for males and 60 and over for females
	Source:
	Table T08 2001 Census National Report for England and Wales

Press Officers

Julian Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many press officers the Department has employed in each of the past five years.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 4 November 2004
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the right hon. Member for Charnwood (Mr. Dorrell) on 25 October 2004, Official Report, column 1057W.

Royal Lodge, Windsor

Alan Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the accommodation consists of at Royal Lodge, Windsor.

Stephen Timms: The accommodation consists of:
	(a) Royal Lodge consisting of the main house including staff accommodation, gardens and grounds of 40.3 hectares including tennis court and the Miniature Welsh Cottage;
	and within these grounds
	(b) Gardener's Cottage;
	(c) Chapel Lodge and
	(d) No. 6 Lodge Cottages.

Somalia

Ian Gibson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many Somalian nationals are resident in the UK.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Ian Gibson, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about Somalian nationals. (195301)
	It is estimated that, for the three months ending in August 2004, there were 60,000 Somalian nationals resident in the United Kingdom.
	This estimate from the Labour Force Survey is, as with any statistical sample survey, subject to sampling variability.

Unclaimed Assets

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the value of unclaimed gilts was in each of the last five years.

Stephen Timms: The following figures have been extracted from the Government Stock register currently maintained by the Bank of England:
	The moneys unclaimed in respect of British Government Stock are:
	
		£ million
		
			 As at 1 November Unclaimed redemption moneys Unclaimed dividend payments Total unclaimed 
		
		
			 2004 23.7 20.9 44.6 
			 2003 22.9 20.4 43.3 
			 2002 33.1 21.1 54.2 
			 2001 24.3 23.0 47.3 
			 2000 24.6 24.8 49.4 
		
	
	Efforts have been, and continue to be, made to reunite unclaimed funds with their rightful recipient.

Unclaimed Assets

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on progress on the proposal in the 2004 Budget to apply unclaimed assets for charitable purposes.

Stephen Timms: We plan to assess and report on progress in this year's PBR.

VAT (Charities)

Jackie Lawrence: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on VAT as applied to charities.

Gordon Brown: The Government will make a one-off donation to the Band Aid Charitable Trust equivalent to the VAT collected on sales of the new Band Aid record and the Live Aid DVD, so that all of the money will benefit the people that need it most in the poorest African countries.

Working Women

Keith Vaz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer in what industry the largest proportion of women in the UK are employed.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Colin Mowl to Mr. Keith Vaz, dated 8 November 2004
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about which industry employs the largest proportion of women in the UK. I am replying in his absence. (196019)
	The industry grouping with the largest proportion of women in employment is Health and social work. In June 2004, 83 per cent. of the jobs in this area were held by women.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Big Lottery Fund

Chris Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will ensure that provision is made by the Big Lottery Fund for the funding of children's play facilities across the country.

Estelle Morris: We are reforming the lottery to make it more responsive to community needs and more flexible in its delivery. The fund is now consulting on themes, outcomes and suggested priorities, which include play. The Big Lottery Fund will be responsible for designing programmes, identifying the most appropriate means of delivery and selecting projects. We will be discussing with the fund how they can best achieve the spirit of the Government's commitment to play, within the framework of funding priorities.

British Library Music Collection

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to require music companies to provide a copy of each CD or DVD that they produce for the British Library collection.

Estelle Morris: There are no plans to make the deposit of sound recordings a statutory obligation. The existing scheme of voluntary deposit is working well.

British Library Music Collection

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what rationale underlies the policy of not requiring music companies to provide a sample copy of each CD or DVD produced for the British Library collection.

Estelle Morris: DCMS's policy is to support the successful voluntary deposit arrangements that exist between the music industry and the British Library. Under the voluntary scheme 85 per cent. of the total UK output of sound recordings are deposited in the Sound Archive of the British Library.
	The voluntary deposit arrangement between the music industry and the British Library is working well.

Children's Play

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she will respond to the Dobson review of children's play; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 21 October 2004, Official Report, column 821W, to my hon. Friend the Member for Gloucester (Mr. Dhanda).

Departmental Offices

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the cost of (a) decoration and (b) refurbishment of the London office of the Department was in each of the last four years.

Richard Caborn: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Meirionnydd Nant Conwy (Mr. Llwyd) on 26 March 2004, Official Report, column 1118W. Since that date £26,000 has been spent on redecoration in two of the four buildings occupied by the Department.

Departmental Publications (Accessibility)

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many and what proportion of publications issued by her Department are available in (a) Braille, (b) autoprint, (c) large print and (d) easy read format.

Richard Caborn: All DCMS publications are available in disability versions on demand. Additionally, all DCMS publications are on the DCMS website which is available by phone.

Departmental/Lottery Spending

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much (a) departmental and (b) Lottery funding has been spent on (i) sport, (ii) museums, galleries and libraries, (iii) arts, (iv) historic buildings, monuments and sites, (v) the Royal Parks, (vi) tourism, (vii) broadcasting and media, (viii) commemorative services and (ix) administration and research in each year from 1997; how much was unallocated; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: Information on departmental spending in these categories from 1998–99 is available in the departmental report 2004 (Cmd. 6220, pages 67 to 73 refer). Copies of the departmental report are placed in the House of Commons Library and it is also available on the DCMS website. Information on departmental spending in 1997–98 is not available on a comparable basis because of the change to resource accounting.
	Tourism and broadcasting/media are not direct beneficiaries of Lottery funding. Information on Lottery spending (i.e. the amount authorised for payment out of the National Lottery Distribution Fund to the distributing bodies for grant payments) for the good causes, including sport, the arts and the national heritage, can be obtained from the National Lottery Distribution Fund Annual Accounts for the years 1997–98 to 2002–03 inclusive. In each year's Accounts, a table headed "Reconciliation of amounts available to distributing bodies" gives the amounts "Authorised for payment to distributing bodies". This equals the amount drawn down (and is equivalent to spending from) the NLDF by the distributors. Copies of the NLDF accounts are available in the House of Commons Library.
	The NLDF annual accounts for 2003–04 are currently being audited prior to publication.

Digital Terrestrial Television

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when digital terrestrial television will be available throughout Totnes constituency, with particular reference to (a) Blackawton and (b) Halwell.

Estelle Morris: Due to the topography of the land and technical constraints on Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) transmissions from the Beacon Hill transmitter, digital terrestrial services are not predicted to be available to viewers in Blackawton and Halwell before Switchover.
	The Government are committed to ensuring that at Switchover everyone who can currently receive the main public service broadcasting channels on analogue will be able to do so on digital systems.
	No firm dates for Switchover have been set, but current discussions suggest that Switchover could start to happen as early as 2007 and be completed by 2012.

English Heritage

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much English Heritage spent on skills and education projects in each year from 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: Since 1997, English Heritage has spent the following on education projects:
	
		English Heritage—money spent on education projects since 1997
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 1997–98 1,150,000 
			 1998–99 1,100,000 
			 1999–2000 1,150,000 
			 2000–01 1,222,000 
			 2001–02 1,210,000 
			 2002–03 1,145,000 
			 2003–04 1,343,000 
		
	
	English Heritage does not undertake specific skills projects, therefore a similar breakdown cannot be provided. They take a strategic approach towards skills development, co-ordinating action across industry, education, other public bodies and government. Since 1997 they have spent £300,000 on supporting the work of the National Heritage Training Group and conducting research into the condition of the traditional building sector, plus £474,000 on supporting parks, gardens and landscape maintenance skills.

Fair Trade

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make it her policy to ensure that all hospitality within her Department is sourced from Fair Trade producers wherever possible within the boundaries set by the public procurement rules.

Richard Caborn: It is already the policy in DCMS for all catering to make use of Fair Trade goods and provisions wherever possible.

Free Television Licences

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many households in Dagenham receive the free television licence for the over-75s.

Estelle Morris: TV Licensing, who administer free television licences for people aged 75 or over as agents for the BBC, are not able to provide geographical breakdowns of the number of free licences issued. However, 2001 Census data indicate that approximately 6,600 people living in the Dagenham constituency are aged 75 or over.

Gambling

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport where she expects the proposed new casinos to be located, broken down by region.

Richard Caborn: holding answer 1 November 2004
	When the Gambling Bill is implemented it will be for operators to decide where to site new casino premises, provided that they have the necessary operating licences, premises licences and planning permission.

Heritage Lottery Fund

Chris Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her policy is in relation to the provision of funds by the Heritage Lottery Fund for heritage properties overseas that have a particular British connection and relevance.

Richard Caborn: Decisions on the provision of funds by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) are a matter for the board of trustees who are independent of Government: it is not open to Ministers to intervene in these decisions. The HLF only supports projects that relate to the national, regional or local heritage of the UK.

Licensing Act

Claire Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she expects the Licensing Act 2003 to be fully implemented; and if she will make a statement on progress with implementation.

Richard Caborn: We are making good progress with the implementation of the Licensing Act 2003. On 7 July, the Secretary of State announced that the first appointed day, when the transitional period begins, would be 7 February 2005, and that full implementation of the 2003 Act was therefore expected for November 2005. Draft regulations, which provide details on how the new licensing system will operate, are currently the subject of a public consultation that ends on 10 November. We announced a separate consultation with regard to the draft on Thursday 4 November.

Lottery Funding (Scotland)

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her estimate is of the displacement of lottery funding to Scotland that would be consequent on a successful London bid for the 2012 Olympics.

Tessa Jowell: In the event of a successful bid, new Olympic Lottery games may lead to a sales diversion from core national lottery games. This, and the possible change to percentage shares after 2009 should the full lottery contribution towards the games be required, could result in a loss of income to the existing good causes of around 5 per cent. before 2009 and up to 12 per cent. between 2009/2012. This displacement of funding will occur at the same level for Scotland as for the rest of the country.

Lottery Games

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the likely overall impact of the new London Olympic lottery game on the existing national lottery.

Tessa Jowell: It is estimated that sales diversion to Olympic lottery games, which will only be introduced if the Olympic bid is successful, will reduce income to the existing good causes by about 5 per cent. overall. The effect is likely to be lower in the early years, and to increase as the games approach.

Lotto Terminals

Anne Picking: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many representations have been made to her expressing concern about the process used by Camelot when selecting outlets for lotto terminals; and if she will make a statement.

Estelle Morris: In the last two years my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has received eight representations expressing concern about the selection process used by Camelot when selecting outlets for lotto terminals. Issues concerning national lottery terminals are a matter for the national lottery operator acting under its licence from the National Lottery Commission.

Olympic Games

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on financial guarantees the Government has given to the International Olympic Committee with regard to the London Olympic bid.

Tessa Jowell: In the Applicant Questionnaire, submitted to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on 15 January 2004 for the first stage of the bid process, the Government confirmed it would be the ultimate guarantor of Olympic funding should there be a shortfall between Olympic costs and revenues.
	For the next stage, in the Candidature File, the IOC are seeking detailed guarantees, within that existing Government commitment, which relate to financing the various elements of the Games. They cover the infrastructure, transport, economic shortfall of the OCOG and government related services such as security, medical, customs and immigration. In agreeing these guarantees the Government will be careful to ensure that the commitments made are consistent with the Olympic funding Memorandum of Understanding laid before Parliament as a Command Paper 5867 and further reported to Parliament in a Departmental Minute dated 2 December 2003.

Olympic Games

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the impact of a successful London Olympic bid on tourism on each (a) country and (b) region of the UK.

Tessa Jowell: We are assessing the impact of staging a London Olympics on various economic sectors, including on tourism. This does not include an attempt to estimate a breakdown of that impact by UK nation and region.

Olympic Games

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her estimate is of the value to the UK economy of the proposed London Olympics; and whether she has made an assessment of employment generated by the proposed games in each (a) country and (b) region of the UK.

Tessa Jowell: We are assessing the impact of staging a London Olympics on the economy, but this does not include an attempt to estimate employment generation by UK nation and region.

Sport (Suffolk Schools)

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans her Department has to promote sport in Suffolk schools.

Richard Caborn: The Government are investing over £1 billion to transform school sport throughout England. This is delivering an ambitious Public Service Agreement target to increase the percentage of 5 to 16-year-olds who spend a minimum of two hours each week on high quality PE and school sport to 75 per cent. by 2006 and to 85 per cent. by 2008.
	As part of this investment the Government are establishing a network of School Sport Partnerships to increase and enhance school sports opportunities for all children in their areas. All maintained primary, special and secondary schools will be in a School Sport Partnership from September 2006. Currently 54 per cent. of schools are in a School Sport Partnership. Suffolk Local Education Authority has four School Sport Partnerships, comprising 23 secondary schools and 76 primary schools.

CABINET OFFICE

Civil Service Pensions

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the latest figure is for the average length of payment of civil service direct benefit pension.

Ruth Kelly: Based on the most recent assessment of the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme carried out by the Scheme Actuary as at 31 March 2003, the average life expectancy for someone retiring at age 60 was 23.2 years (men) and 26.2 years (women).

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

African Union

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the African Union about monitoring of (a) ceasefire violations and (b) breaches of international (i) human rights and (ii) humanitarian law.

Chris Mullin: We are in daily contact with the African Union (AU) about their Monitoring mission in Darfur. In recent months my right hon. Friends the Foreign Secretary and the Secretary of State for International Development, have both spoken to the Chair of the AU Commission, Alpha Oumar Konare, and the AU Commissioner for Peace and Security, Said Djinnet. I met with both Mr. Konare and Mr. Djinnet during my visit to Addis Ababa on 26 October.

British Overseas Territories

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list for each British overseas territory, the responsibilities which in England would be those of a central Government Department but which in that territory are exercised by (a) him and (b) the Crown's representative.

Bill Rammell: Most of the Overseas Territories enjoy a large degree of internal self-government and control over their own domestic affairs. However, certain reserved powers are retained by the Governor or equivalent (HM the Queen's representative in each Overseas Territory), in order to protect the UK Government's overall responsibility for the good governance of the Overseas Territories and for their defence and external affairs. In general, defence, internal security, external affairs, nationality and administration of the public service and police remain the responsibility of the Governor or equivalent. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary does not exercise direct responsibilities in the territories, but may instruct Governors or their equivalents as to the exercise of many of their functions.
	The main responsibilities of the Governor in each territory are as follows:
	Anguilla
	External affairs; defence; internal security (including the police); offshore finance; the public service.
	Bermuda
	External affairs; defence (including armed forces); internal security and the police; certain senior appointments.
	British Virgin Islands
	External affairs; defence; internal security (including the police); the public service.
	Cayman Islands
	External affairs; internal security (including the police); defence; the public service.
	Falkland Islands
	External affairs; the public service; (with the Commander British Forces) defence and internal security.
	Gibraltar
	All matters not specifically allocated to local Ministers; in particular for defence, external affairs and internal security.
	Montserrat
	External affairs; defence; internal security (including the police); offshore finance; public service.
	Pitcairn Islands
	External affairs; defence of the Islands; some other broad policy issues (Pitcairn islanders manage their day-to-day internal affairs through the Island Council and the Island Internal Committee).
	St. Helena and dependencies
	External affairs; defence; internal security; the police; finance; shipping; the public service.
	Turks and Caicos Islands
	Defence; external affairs; offshore finance; internal security (including the police); management of the public service.
	Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia in Cyprus
	The Sovereign Base Areas (SBA) are military bases. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence has overall responsibility for the Sovereign Base Areas, but day-to-day responsibility for the bases rests with the SBA Administration.
	British Antarctic Territory, British Indian Ocean Territory and South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands
	In these Territories, most governmental functions are exercisable by the Commissioner or by officers subordinate to the Commissioner. There are no settled populations and, accordingly, there are no local representative institutions.

Commonwealth Countries

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of which countries the Queen is the head of state. (186895)
	 Question number missing in Hansard, possibly truncated question.

Bill Rammell: pursuant to the reply, 7 September 2004, Official Report, c. 1060–61W
	There were a number of errors in my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Mr Mullin's answer of 7 September to the hon. Member, for which I apologise. The correct answer should read as follows:
	Her Majesty The Queen is the Sovereign and Head of State of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Her Majesty's Realms, Her Majesty's Overseas Territories, and Her Majesty's Crown Dependencies.
	HM Realms are:
	Antigua and Barbuda
	Australia
	The Bahamas
	Barbados
	Belize
	Canada
	Grenada
	Jamaica
	New Zealand
	Papua New Guinea
	St Kitts and Nevis
	St. Lucia
	St. Vincent and the Grenadines
	Solomon Islands
	Tuvalu
	HM Overseas Territories are:
	Anguilla
	Bermuda
	British Antarctic Territory
	British Indian Ocean Territory
	British Virgin Islands
	Cayman Islands
	Falkland Islands
	Gibraltar
	Montserrat
	Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands
	St Helena and her Dependencies of Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha
	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
	The Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia on Cyprus
	Turks and Caicos Islands
	Her Majesty's Crown Dependencies are:
	The Isle of Man
	The Bailiwick of Jersey
	The Bailiwick of Guernsey

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he will reply to the letter to him dated 1 September from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Pastor D. Lindsay.

Chris Mullin: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary replied on 29 October.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he will reply to the letter to him dated 23 August from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Ms Saira Ash.

Chris Mullin: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary replied on 29 October.

Custodial Sentences (Foreign Jails)

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British citizens are serving custodial sentences in foreign jails, broken down by country.

Chris Mullin: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not collate the numbers of British Nationals serving custodial sentences overseas. Providing the hon. Member with the requested information could be provided only at disproportionate cost. We do, however, collate annual and quarterly figures for all British Nationals detained who have requested consular assistance, whether they are on remand or in custody. I refer the hon. Member to the replies I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Bury, North (Mr. Chaytor) on 13 May 2004, Official Report, columns 514–15W.

Departmental IT

Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what percentage of the Department's (a) implemented and (b) planned computer systems use open source software; and what plans are in place to raise this level.

Chris Mullin: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) currently makes no significant use of open source software.
	It is the FCO's practice to procure IT on the basis of best value for money. In doing this we are careful not to exclude open source solutions, but we have no specific objective to increase our use of open source software.

Departmental Offices

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the cost of (a) decoration and (b) refurbishment of the London office of the Department was in each of the last four years.

Bill Rammell: The cost of decoration and refurbishment of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's London offices (King Charles Street and the Old Admiralty Building) in each of the last four years is as follows:
	
		£
		
			  Decorations Refurbishment 
		
		
			 2001 100,368 70,000 
			 2002 68,197 629,000 
			 2003 74,342 583,000 
			 2004 113,000 10,000

Eritrea/Ethiopia

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government have taken to ensure that Ethiopia (a) accepts the 2002 World Court ruling regarding its border dispute with Eritrea and (b) withdraws from the occupied town of Badme.

Chris Mullin: The UK continues to press Ethiopia to accept the final and binding decision of the Boundary Commission. I raised this most recently with Prime Minister Meles in Addis Ababa on 26 October.

Eritrea/Ethiopia

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the governments involved in the Eritrean-Ethiopian border dispute.

Chris Mullin: The UK discusses the Ethiopia-Eritrea border dispute with both parties on a regular basis. I raised the issue with Eritrean President Isaias in Asmara on 15 January and most recently with Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles in Addis Ababa on 26 October.

Eritrea/Ethiopia

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the (a) UN, (b) EU and (c) African Union regarding the Eritrea-Ethiopia border dispute.

Chris Mullin: The UK discusses the Ethiopia-Eritrea border dispute with the EU, UN and the African Union on a regular basis and is actively supporting their efforts to promote a lasting peace. I discussed the issue with UN Special Envoy Lloyd Axworthy in London on 3 November.

India (Brood Mares)

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has discussed with the Indian Government restrictions on the importation of British brood mares into India.

Alun Michael: I have been asked to reply.
	India is only prepared to import breeding horses from countries which have been free from contagious equine metritis (GEM) for at least three years. The UK cannot currently comply with this requirement which goes beyond the Office International des Epizooties (International Organisation for Animal Health) Terrestrial Animal Health Code guidelines on GEM. We have, on a number of occasions, pressed the Indian authorities to accept health assurances for breeding horses in line with OIE guidelines, but without success.

Iraq

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 26 October 2004, Official Report, column 1177W, on Iraq, what factors obstructed verification of the 45 minute claim between the start of the US-led administration in Iraq and the publication of (a) the Hutton report and (b) the Butler report.

Jack Straw: The validation of human intelligence sources is described in Chapter 5.9 of Lord Butler's report. The report commended SIS for the thoroughness with which it had sought to validate these sources after the war. These matters have been examined during the course of the Butler Review and other inquiries, and covered during debates and statements on Iraq.

Iraq

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 28 October, Official Report, column 1386W, on the Iraq Survey Group Report, whether the intelligence relating to the assertion in the September 2002 dossier that Iraq sought to procure uranium from Africa, which was not shared with the Iraq Survey Group, was shared with Lord Butler of Brockwell's Review Committee.

Jack Straw: Yes, as was confirmed in paragraph 503 of Lord Butler's report.

Khartoum University

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the recent arrests of students at the University of Khartoum; and whether he has interceded on their behalf.

Chris Mullin: In September five students from the University of Khartoum, and one from Port Sudan were arrested. All have now been released.
	On 9 October, students at the University of Khartoum set fire to the Student Support Fund offices on the university campus in protest at perceived irregularities in the way the fund is run. Sudanese police announced that 37 arrests were made in connection to this incident. As of 11 October, 32 had been released and five were detained pending further investigations.
	Our embassy in Khartoum regularly raises the detentions of students and activists with the Government of Sudan.

Overseas Parliaments (English Teaching)

David Atkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what projects are undertaken by (a) British embassies and (b) the British Council to offer members of overseas parliaments free lessons to learn the English language; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mullin: Neither the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), nor the British Council runs centrally-funded programmes to provide free English lessons to overseas parliamentarians. The British Council provides English language training on a repayment basis. Where this is sponsored by other organisations, including FCO posts, it may be free to participants, including parliamentarians. Although central records are not kept, and the following list may not be definitive, these projects have been carried out by the British Council on behalf of the sponsoring bodies indicated:
	
		
			 Country Details Sponsor 
		
		
			 Bulgaria 15 x 30-hour courses between autumn 2002 and autumn 2004 for MPs and Ministers and occasional courses for parliamentary Members and Deputy Ministers/Ministers British embassy 
			
			 Morocco 30 hours for eight Ministers—total 240 hours British embassy 
			
			 Romania 540 hours for the presidential administration UNDP 
			
			 Sri Lanka 100 hours for parliamentary administrators UNDP 
			
			 Ukraine 75 hours for one MP and tuition for four other British embassy members of the Verhovna Rada Committee for European Integration  
			
			 Georgia Tuition for over 50 Members of Parliament British embassy/British Council 
		
	
	Parliamentarians may be nominated for Chevening Fellowships sponsored by the FCO. These courses include an optional opportunity for the Fellows to improve their English, which is free to participants.

Press Releases

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each month of 2004; and if he will make a statement.

Jack Straw: To date the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) have issued 314 press releases in 2004 on various subjects:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 January 22 
			 February 31 
			 March 21 
			 April 36 
			 May 36 
			 June 33 
			 July 31 
			 August 31 
			 September 34 
			 October 35 
			 November 4 
		
	
	FCO missions overseas issue their own press releases directly to their host country's media. A record of these is not held centrally.

Sudan

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many prisoners of conscience in Sudan, detained for the non-violent expression of their opinions, have been released in the last six months.

Chris Mullin: The Sudan Organisation Against Torture (SOAT) estimates that, during the last six months, 139 people have been arrested in Sudan for the non-violent expression of their opinions. Of these, 24 have so far been released.
	SOAT is closely monitoring the cases of those who remain in custody. Our embassy in Khartoum makes regular representations to the Government of Sudan on the need for due process in its judicial system and maintains close contact with Sudanese human rights organisations.

Sudan

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department has taken to provide the support necessary for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to strengthen its monitoring capacity in Darfur.

Chris Mullin: We strongly welcomed the decision by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to expand its monitoring mission in Darfur. The UK provided £250,000 for the deployment of the original eight OHCHR monitors to Darfur, and have made clear our willingness to provide support to assist the expansion.

Trinidad and Tobago

George Foulkes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the travel advice for Trinidad and Tobago was last updated.

Bill Rammell: The date of the most recent review of all Foreign and Commonwealth Office Travel Advice notices is given at the top of the advice. The Travel Advice for Trinidad and Tobago was last updated on 19 October 2004.

Trinidad and Tobago

George Foulkes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when a Minister from his Department last visited Trinidad and Tobago; and what plans he has to visit Trinidad and Tobago.

Bill Rammell: I was the last Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister to visit Trinidad and Tobago in March of this year. It is not our practice to announce visits until they are firm. Because of the unpredictable nature of world events, final decisions on overseas visits are often not possible until very shortly before the day of travel.
	My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary met the Foreign Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, the hon. Knowlson Gift, at the UK-Caribbean Forum in London in May this year.

Turkey (Penal Code)

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his policy is on section 306 of the new Turkish penal code and the new criminal offence of speaking against the national interest, with particular reference to comments in Turkey on (a) the Armenian genocide and (b) the withdrawal of troops from Cyprus, in the context of Turkey's application for accession to the EU; and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: Article 306 of the Turkish penal code is about the recruitment of militia against a foreign state. Article 305, however, concerns Turkish citizens acting against national interests in return for material benefits from a foreign individual or organisation. The wording of this article only refers to such national interests as independence, territorial integrity and national security. There is no mention of Cyprus or the Armenian genocide.
	The commission, with our support, will monitor implementation of all laws closely to ensure Turkey meets its international legal obligations.

Uzbekistan

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the US State Department's conclusions in relation to Uzbekistan regarding (a) its absence of democracy and a free press and (b) its use of torture as a routine investigation technique; and if he will make a statement.

Jack Straw: holding answer of 4 November 2004
	The US State Department conclusions to which the right hon. Gentleman refers represent the basis upon which the US Secretary of State took the decision in July to withdraw up to $18 million in aid programmes to Uzbekistan. The decision was taken because of Uzbekistan's lack of progress in meeting its commitments to improve its human rights record under the strategic partnership framework agreed in 2002 between Uzbekistan and the US.
	The US position is consistent with messages conveyed to the Uzbek Government by the UK and EU partners.

Vietnam

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the work of the British Council in Vietnam.

Chris Mullin: The British Council in Vietnam operates in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. It has about 100 staff. Its main activities are English language training, education development, governance, promotion of UK creativity, and of UK education and qualifications, and managing the Chevening Scholarships programme.
	The Council has a Memorandum of Understanding with the Vietnamese Education and Training Ministry covering support in education development and advice on teaching English. Demand for its education services is growing rapidly, with Hanoi being one of its fastest-growing teaching centres world-wide. Its information centres provide information on all aspects of UK education, life and culture. It has showcased UK achievements in science and technology through a DNA50 exhibition and work on governance issues through programmes such as journalist training.
	It is also engaged in a capacity-building programme for senior Vietnamese officials.

Visas

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many visitors' visas were granted by high commission offices in (a) India, (b) Pakistan and (c) Sri Lanka during the last 12 months.

Chris Mullin: For the period from 1 October 2003 until 1 October 2004, the figures are as follows:
	
		
			  Visit visas issued 
		
		
			 India (to include Chennai, Calcutta, Mumbai  and New Delhi) 122,732 
			 Pakistan (to include Islamabad and Karachi) 61,128 
			 Sri Lanka (Colombo only) 11,674

NORTHERN IRELAND

Free Transport Scheme

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many journeys on (a) Ulsterbus, (b) Citybus and (c) Northern Ireland Railways were undertaken by senior citizens using the free transport scheme in the year ending 31 December 2003.

John Spellar: Translink have advised that in the year ending 31 December 2003 the following free journeys were ticketed by senior citizens using the Northern Ireland Concessionary Fares Scheme:
	(a) 3,659,599 on Ulsterbus,
	(b) 3,596,629 on Citybus, and
	(c) 153,859 on Northern Ireland Railways (MR).
	The figures for NIR reflect the fact that new ticketing systems, which record free journeys taken, were progressively introduced on the railway network throughout 2003.

Magilligan-Greencastle Ferry

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 20 October 2004, Official Report, column 811W, on the Magilligan-Greencastle Ferry, what information he has collated on the sums provided by (a) Limavady borough council and (b) Donegal county council towards operating the Magilligan-Greencastle Ferry Service since its introduction.

John Spellar: The Magilligan-Greencastle ferry is funded directly by Limavady borough council and Donegal county council. I have passed your query on to the Chief Executive of Limavady borough council.

Paramilitary Criminal Activity

David Burnside: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his estimate is of the (a) size, (b) scale and (c) range of criminal activities being carried out by (i) the UDA, (ii) the UVF, (iii) PIRA and (iv) INLA; and what action is being taken to stop such activities.

Ian Pearson: The Organised Crime Task Force (OCTF) Threat Assessment, which was launched on 11 May 2004, clearly indicated that all Northern Ireland based paramilitary groups remain involved in organised crime, particularly in respect of counterfeiting, drugs, oils fraud, extortion, money laundering, robbery and illegal tobacco.
	The IMC reports of 20 April and 4 November also provide a clear assessment of the criminal activities of all paramilitary groups.
	The Organised Crime Task Force provides the strategic framework for the law enforcement agencies to share intelligence and agree priorities for tackling organised crime in Northern Ireland. The effectiveness of this approach is clearly evidenced by the partner agencies' continuing successes against organised criminal gangs.

Pension Shortfall

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to introduce relief for homeowners facing the prospect of being forced to sell or re-mortgage their homes because of an income reduction caused by a pension shortfall.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government are tackling pensioner poverty through personal tax and benefit changes which mean that the average pensioner household is now £26 per week better off in 2004–05 than they would have been under a continuation of the 1997 system. One of the key measures that offers extra financial support to the poorest and most vulnerable is the pension credit. This guarantees pensioners a minimum weekly income of £105.45 for single pensioners and £160.95 for couples and rewards pensioners who have low or moderate income or who have saved for their retirement.
	For those who face a shortfall from their occupational pension schemes, from next April, when a company becomes insolvent and is unable to honour employees' Defined Benefit pension rights, the new Pension Protection Fund will offer a scheme that offers compensation, thus reducing the shortfall that they would otherwise suffer. To help members of schemes that wind-up before April 2005 DWP are developing a Financial Assistance Scheme

Planning

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what action he will take to prevent development without prior planning permission through the operation of the retrospective planning process.

Angela Smith: The planning system aims to stop unacceptable development and to allow other development to proceed, subject to conditions. In certain circumstances, it is appropriate to accept retrospective planning applications, but generally, development in advance of planning permission is discouraged. To strengthen this, I shall bring forward legislation in the forthcoming Planning Reform Order enabling the Department to apply a multiple of the normal planning fee to retrospective planning applications.
	The Department is also implementing recommendations from its benchmarking of planning enforcement against planning authorities in Great Britain that enable more effective action against unauthorised development. This includes an experienced, well equipped and well trained body of enforcement staff commensurate to its workload that can act within reasonable timescales, further development of working relationships with district councils and seeking the application of more realistic fines by the courts.

Prisons

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many cells in prisons in Northern Ireland are occupied by more prisoners than those cells were designed to hold.

Ian Pearson: At present there are 156 cells designed for single occupancy that now accommodate two prisoners per cell.

Telecommunications Masts

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what consultations are being held with the mobile telecommunications industry on the need for further dialogue between communities living in the immediate vicinity of masts and their possible relocation.

Angela Smith: My Department is not involved in any formal consultations with the telecommunications industry on this matter.
	As you will be aware, all proposals for the erection of mobile phone masts in Northern Ireland require planning permission and are considered on their individual merits against prevailing planning policies, taking account of representations received following normal advertising and consultation arrangements.
	The telecommunications industry does, however, appreciate that the Government would support greater public consultation by operators prior to planning applications for new telecommunications equipment being lodged.
	It was for this reason the Mobile Operators Association (MOA), which represents the main mobile telecommunications operators, developed the Traffic Light Rating Model for Public Consultation, as part of the operators 10 commitments. The guide is to assist the operators in ascertaining the amount and type of public consultation that is required for any proposed site. The consultation that is carried out under this process by the operator is in addition to that already carried out by the Planning Service for planning permission.

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Child Witnesses (Court Delays)

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what assessment he has made of the (a) level and (b) length of delays in court cases involving a child witness since 1997.

Christopher Leslie: The waiting time for a child called as a prosecution witness in the Crown courts in June 2004 was 118 minutes, down from 155 minutes in 1997. For a child called as a defence witness, the waiting time was 54 minutes, compared to 189 minutes in November 1997.
	In the magistrates courts, the waiting time for a child called as a prosecution witness was 92 minutes, down from 97 minutes in 1997. For a child called as a defence witness, the waiting time was 134 minutes compared to 153 minutes in November 1997.
	The Effective Trial Management and "No Witness No Justice" Programmes will reduce the numbers of ineffective trials and delay at court and further improve services for victims and witnesses, including child witnesses.

Civil Servants

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the average length of continuous service for civil servants within the Department is.

David Lammy: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office (Ruth Kelly), on 3 November 2004, Official Report, column 267W.

Electoral Registration

Nigel Evans: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what action he is taking to ensure that Electoral Registration Officers are proactive in registering overseas voters.

Christopher Leslie: Electoral Registration Officers each year invite electors who have applied to be added to the overseas electors' list to renew their applications to be included in the electoral register. The independent Electoral Commission provides information and advice to British citizens living abroad on their electoral rights and has produced a registration form for use by eligible British citizens.

Magistrates

Graham Allen: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs if Ministers in the Department will make it their policy to encourage magistrates to meet tenants' leaders, neighbourhood watch co-ordinators and other community leaders in the areas they serve; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: There are existing and successful programmes in operation so that magistrates can engage with their local communities, such as "Magistrates in the Community" which aims to raise awareness of the magistracy and its work.
	The Secretary of State has commissioned a programme entitled "Supporting Magistrates to Provide Justice". This initiative will be seeking input from all those who work within, and with, the magistrates courts. Ideas from here will be fed through to the very good work that is already being carried out under the Magistrates in the Community Programme, and further foster community links. Further announcements in relation to this initiative will be made in due course.
	In addition, the Courts Boards that are being established will provide another means of engaging with representatives of the local community.

Magistrates

Graham Allen: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs if he will make it his policy to encourage magistrates to meet hon. Members who serve courts in their constituency.

Christopher Leslie: Hon. Members can meet with magistrates to discuss the general concerns of their constituency, where both parties are content. In order to preserve judicial independence, magistrates should not be asked to discuss individual cases.

Public Services

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what his Department has done in the last 12 months to fulfil its role as a Department improving the quality of and people's confidence in public services.

Christopher Leslie: Public service delivery is at the heart of the Department for Constitutional Affairs. Putting people at the centre of the Department's work is a vital component in our vision for better quality service. Justice for all is as central to the objectives of this Government as is education for all and health care for all. So since the creation of the Department for Constitutional Affairs in June 2003 we have been working to make sure that the Department delivers for the people who use its services—especially in our justice system, where people seeking redress either against crime or against civil injustices are at the centre of what the system exists to achieve.
	That means offering particular support to victims, to witnesses and to jurors. It means improving and reforming our justice system and our legal system to make sure that they offer the best possible help to those who make use of them. It means making our courts work better so that the public's confidence can be raised. A vital part of that will be the creation in April next year of a unified courts administration—for the first time, bringing all courts together administratively. It means making sure, for example, that the market for legal services is working as well as it should be. It was for this reason we established a far-reaching review of legal services headed by Sir David Clementi, which will report shortly. It is also why we have established a fundamental review of our legal aid system. The new consumer strategy review within the DCA will also help to make sure that we put people first in all that we do.
	We believe that these and a range of other steps are contributing to the quality of public service, which this Department is committed to deliver, and to people's confidence in those services. There is a great deal more to do. But we believe that we have made a good start.

HEALTH

Agenda for Change

Phil Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of the total cost of implementing "Agenda for Change"; and if he will ensure that these costs are fully funded by central Government.

John Hutton: The latest estimate of costs for implementing "Agenda for Change" is that expected costs nationally represent 1.8 per cent. of the non-medical pay bill in 2004–05 and 3.7 per cent. of non-medical pay bill in 2005–06. The corresponding total levels of funding for "Agenda for Change" in each of those years, expressed as percentage of non-medical pay bill, are 2.1 per cent. and 3.8 per cent. respectively.

Aimspro

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment the National Institute for Clinical Excellence has made of the current trials of the use of Aimspro for multiple sclerosis sufferers; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The treatment Aimspro is not licensed for use in the United Kingdom and has not been referred to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence for assessment.

Aimspro

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research has been done into the effects of Aimspro on MS sufferers.

Rosie Winterton: Aimspro is a product being developed by Daval International, a United Kingdom company, for a number of indications, including multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. The company is conducting or planning to conduct a number of trials in these disease areas. The only clinical data available currently to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency comes from individual patient case reports and we are not aware of any formal clinical trial data or scientific publications on Aimspro.

Available Beds

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many beds were available in the Hull and East Yorkshire hospitals NHS trust in the last two quarters for which figures are available.

Melanie Johnson: Information on the number of beds is collected and published on an annual basis. In 2003–04, the average daily number of open and staffed beds in the Hull and East Yorkshire hospitals national health service trust was 1,425, including 1,332 general and acute beds.

Breast Cancer Units

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many breast cancer units there are at NHS hospitals within the Greater London area.

Stephen Ladyman: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Bus Service

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the future of the Tilley bus service between Edgware and Barnet hospitals.

Stephen Ladyman: This is an operational matter for Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals National Health Service Trust.

Children's Wards

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the hospitals covering the Greater London area which have children's wards.

Stephen Ladyman: Information on the national health service bodies within the five London strategic health authorities (SHAs) who have reported on wards open in the day and overnight relating to children is shown in the tables.
	
		Trusts from the five London SHAs that reported in one or more of the ward classifications 1,2,7,8,13,14,20,21 :(beds in wards open overnight)
		
			  SHA Organisation identifier  Name 
		
		
			 Q04 RV3 Central and North West London Mental Health NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RQM Chelsea and Westminster Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RC3 Ealing Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RQN Hammersmith Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RV8 North West London Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RT3 Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RJ5 St. Mary's NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RAS The Hillingdon Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RFW West Middlesex University NHS Trust 
			 Q05 RVL Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Q05 5A9 Barnet PCT 
			 Q05 RRP Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust 
			 Q05 5C1 Enfield PCT 
			 Q05 RP4 Great Ormond Street Hospital For Children NHS Trust 
			 Q05 5K8 Islington PCT 
			 Q05 RP6 Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q05 RAP North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q05 RAL Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust 
			 Q05 RAN Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q05 RKE The Whittington Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q05 RRV University College London Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Q06 RF4 Barking, Havering and Redbridge Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Q06 RNJ Barts and the London NHS Trust 
			 Q06 RWK East London and the City Mental Health NHS Trust 
			 Q06 RQX Homerton University Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q06 RNH Newham Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 Q06 5C5 Newham PCT 
			 Q06 RAT North East London Mental Health NHS Trust 
			 Q06 RGC Whipps Cross University Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q07 RG3 Bromley Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Q07 RJ1 Guy's and St. Thomas' NHS Trust 
			 Q07 RJZ King's College Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q07 RG2 Queen Elizabeth Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q07 RGZ Queen Mary's Sidcup NHS Trust 
			 Q07 RV5 South London and Maudsley NHS Trust 
			 Q07 RJ2 The Lewisham Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RVR Epsom and St. Helier NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RAX Kingston Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RJ6 Mayday Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RQY South West London and St. George's Mental Health NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RJ7 St. George's Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RPY Royal Marsden NHS Trust 
		
	
	
		
			 Ward classifications (beds in wards open overnight) 
		
		
			 1 Intensive care: neonates 
			 2 Intensive care: paediatric 
			 3 Intensive care: wholly or mainly adult 
			 6 Terminally ill/palliative care: wholly or mainly adult 
			 7 Younger physically disabled 
			 8 Other general and acute: neonates and children 
			 9 Other general and acute: elderly: normal care 
			 10 Other general and acute: elderly: limited care 
			 11 Other general and acute: other 
			 12 Maternity 
			 13 Mental illness: children: short stay 
			 14 Mental illness: children: long stay 
			 15 Mental illness: elderly: short stay 
			 16 Mental illness: elderly: long stay 
			 17 Mental illness: other ages: secure unit 
			 18 Mental illness: other ages: short stay 
			 19 Mental illness: other ages: long stay 
			 20 Learning disabilities: children: short stay 
			 21 Learning disabilities: children: long stay 
			 22 Learning disabilities: other ages: secure unit 
			 23 Learning disabilities: other ages: short stay 
			 24 Learning disabilities: other ages: long stay 
		
	
	
		Trusts from the five London SHAs that reported in the 'Neonates and Children' ward classification (beds in wards open day only)
		
			  SHA Organisation identifier  Name 
		
		
			 Q04 RQM Chelsea and Westminster Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RC3 Ealing Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RQN Hammersmith Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RV8 North West London Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RJ5 St. Mary's NHS Trust 
			 Q04 RAS The Hillingdon Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q05 RP4 Great Ormond Street Hospital For Children  NHS Trust 
			 Q05 RKE The Whittington Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q05 RRV University College London Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 Q06 RNJ Barts and the London NHS Trust 
			 Q06 RNH Newham Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 Q06 5C5 Newham PCT 
			 Q07 RJ1 Guy's and St. Thomas' NHS Trust 
			 Q07 RJZ King's College Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q07 RG2 Queen Elizabeth Hospital NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RVR Epsom and St. Helier NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RJ6 Mayday Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RJ7 St. George's Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 Q08 RPY The Royal Marsden NHS Trust

Complementary Medicine

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the amount spent on complementary and alternative medicine in England in each of the last five years.

Melanie Johnson: The Department does not collect such data.

Consultant Surgeons

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many consultant surgeons working in hospitals in the Greater London area have been suspended from duty in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department routinely collected information on the number of consultants suspended for more than six months until June 2004. This information was not broken down by speciality. The number of consultants suspended for more than six months within the five London strategic health authority areas for the last three years is shown in the table.
	
		
			 Period Suspensions 
		
		
			 Quarter 2, 2001 to quarter 2, 2002 1 
			 Quarter 3, 2002 to quarter 2, 2003 2 
			 Quarter 3, 2003 to quarter 2, 2004 2

Delayed Discharges

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he is taking to tackle delayed discharges from hospitals within the Greater London area.

Stephen Ladyman: The Community Care (Delayed Discharges, etc.) Act 2003 places new duties on councils and the national health service relating to joint working between health and social care systems and with patients and carers around hospital discharge. From January 2004, the Act introduced a financial incentive to avoid delayed discharges. That is supported by the delayed discharges grant.
	Latest figures show the total number of patients delayed in an acute hospital bed on any one day, within the five London strategic health authority areas, is now 318—a reduction of 67 per cent., since September 2001.

Dentistry

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to encourage recruitment of NHS dentists within the Greater London area.

Stephen Ladyman: We have undertaken a review of the dental primary care workforce in consultation with representatives of the dental profession—professional bodies, dental academics, as well as the British Dental Association (BDA). We have worked closely with the BDA to draw up proposals for a new contract from April 2005, which will remove the treadmill of item of service.
	This links with the new duties primary care trusts (PCTs) will have from April 2005 to secure the provision of primary dental care services, either through contracts with individual practices, or by providing services themselves. PCTs, including those within London, have been drawing up local dentistry action plans, setting out how they are using their proportion of the £59 million additional funding we have allocated to improve access to NHS dentistry this year and their priorities for commissioning in 2005–06.
	The NHS workforce will be increased by the equivalent of 1,000 dentists by October 2005, allowing up to an extra two million people to be treated nationally.

Departmental IT

Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of the Department's (a) implemented and (b) planned computer systems use open source software; and what plans are in place to raise this level.

Rosie Winterton: The Department does not use open source software (OSS) on any of its implemented or planned computer systems.
	Software procurement by the Department follows the 'level playing field' Government OSS Policy, which does not require the raising of levels of OSS usage in Government; rather that Government considers OSS solutions alongside proprietary ones in information technology procurements and that contracts should be awarded on a value for money, case by case basis. This policy can be viewed at www.govtalk.gov.uk.

Departmental Offices

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of (a) decoration and (b) refurbishment of the London offices of the Department was in each of the last four years.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		£
		
			  Decoration works Refurbishments 
		
		
			 2000–01 85,542.20 652,456 
			 2001–02 171,202.51 1,029,000 
			 2002–03 116,738.31 1,978,000 
			 2003–04 178,968.54 2,841,000

Dermatology

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many days training an undergraduate medical student receives in dermatology; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: Individual university medical schools determine their own undergraduate medical curriculum in the light of recommendations from the General Medical Council's education committee, which has the statutory responsibility to determine the extent and knowledge and skill required for the granting of primary medical qualifications in the United Kingdom.
	The education committee's most recent recommendations on undergraduate medical education are contained in "Tomorrow's Doctors," which was published in July 2002. It recommends curricular themes and is not a complete guide.

Gunshot Wounds

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many victims have been treated for gunshot wounds in UK hospitals in each of the last five years.

Rosie Winterton: Information on the number of patients admitted to hospital in England as a result of gunshot injuries in the last five years is shown in the table. Information is not collected centrally on the number of patients treated in accident and emergency but not admitted. The information covers England only.
	
		Injuries from gunshots—primary diagnosis (ICD-10 SOO—T98) injury. Cause code (ICD-10 W32—W34)—discharge from firearm. Count of finished admission episodes—national health service hospitals, England 1998–99 to 2002–03
		
			 Year Admissions 
		
		
			 1998–99 134 
			 1999–2000 117 
			 2000–01 102 
			 2001–02 155 
			 2002–03 129 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. A finished admission episode is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within a year.
	2. The cause code is a supplementary code that indicates the nature of any external cause of injury, poisoning or other adverse affects.
	3. The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 14 (seven prior to 2002–03) diagnosis fields in the hospital episode statistics data set and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital.

Health Spending (Leeds)

Paul Truswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been spent in each year since 1990 by Leeds Primary Care Trust and its predecessor health care commissioning bodies.

Melanie Johnson: Expenditure by the Leeds Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) and their predecessor commissioning bodies from 1991–92 to 2003–04 is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Expenditure 
		
		
			 1991–92 355,557,000 
			 1992–93 375,741,000 
			 1993–94 397,178,000 
			 1994–95 418,162,000 
			 1995–96 457,889,000 
			 1996–97 491,271,000 
			 1997–98 485,232,000 
			 1998–99 539,539,000 
			 1999–2000 613,214,000 
			 2000–01 647,260,000 
			 2001–02 670,609,000 
			 2002–03 699,277,000 
			 2003–04 755,308,000 
		
	
	Sources:
	Audited Leeds Family Health Services Authority accounts 1991–92 to 1995–96.
	Audited Leeds Healthcare District Health Authority accounts 1991–92 to 1995–96.
	Audited Leeds Health Authority (HA) accounts 1996–97 to 1998–99.
	Audited Leeds HA summarisation forms 1999–2000 to 2001–02.
	Audited Leeds PCTs summarisation schedules 2002–03 and 2003–04.
	2003–04 data remain provisional.
	The geographical areas of the organisations are the same for the PCTs/HA. The figures are not directly comparable for the commissioning organisations because expenditure on medicines was switched from HAs to the Prescription Pricing Authority in 1997–98.
	Information is not available prior to 1991–92.

Health Spending (Leeds)

Paul Truswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding has been received in each year since 1990 by the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and its predecessor bodies.

Melanie Johnson: Income for the Leeds Teaching Hospital National Health Service Trust and its predecessor trusts from 1991–92 to 2003–04 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Income 
		
		
			 1991–92 222,027,000 
			 1992–93 251,443,000 
			 1993–94 271,038,000 
			 1994–95 289,905,000 
			 1995–96 360,152,000 
			 1996–97 377,538,000 
			 1997–98 410,305,000 
			 1998–99 432,071,000 
			 1999–2000 472,694,000 
			 2000–01 504,292,000 
			 2001–02 550,749,000 
			 2002–03 596,678,000 
			 2003–04 627,148,000 
		
	
	Source:
	Audited NHS trust summarisation schedules 1991–92 to 2003–04. 2003–04 data remain provisional.

Hospital Infections

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients in each (a) hospital and (b) trust in England have contracted methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus in the NHS since 1997, broken down into age groups (a) 0–10, (b) 11–20, (c) 21–30, (d) 31–40, (e) 41–50, (f) 51–60, (g) 61–70, (h) 71–80, (i) 81–90 and (j) older than 90 years.

Melanie Johnson: Information for individual national health service trusts and hospitals broken down by age is not available.

Hospital Infections

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) UK and (b) Scottish recipients are anticipated to qualify for the Skipton Fund support for those who have contracted Hepatitis C from infected NHS blood products; and if he will make a statement.

Melanie Johnson: It is not possible to provide accurate figures on the number of people who will benefit from the Hepatitis C ex-gratia payment scheme.

Hospital Infections

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the work of Directors of Infection Control.

Melanie Johnson: The director of infection prevention and control should oversee local control of infection policies and their implementation; and report directly to the chief executive and trust board. We expect these authoritative figures to play a key role in producing a national health service culture where infection control is everyone's business, rather than the job of specialists. They should have the authority to challenge inappropriate clinical hygiene practice as well as antibiotic prescribing decisions. Directors should have the appropriate expertise and authority to act to reduce local infection rates and one of their tasks is to produce a public annual report on progress.

Hysterectomy

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many adverse incidents have been recorded from (a) uterine fibroid embolisation, (b) endometrial ablation and (c) hysterectomy, in each year since 1999.

Rosie Winterton: The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) has been established to improve the safety of national health service patient care by promoting an open culture and by introducing a new national reporting and learning system for patient safety incidents. The reporting system is being implemented across the NHS during 2004 and will provide information about reported patient safety incidents, including potentially any involving uterine fibroid embolisation, endometrial ablation or hysterectomy.

Junior Doctors

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he will take to improve the retention of junior doctors wishing to train part-time.

John Hutton: In the last few years, there has been an increase in the number of junior doctors training on a part time basis under the existing flexible training scheme. This success means that more doctors are seeking part time posts in the national health service, and the Department is currently working with the British Medical Association and deaneries to develop new proposals for flexible trainees, which will better integrate into the NHS work force.

Junior Doctors

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to increase post-graduate deanery budgets to accommodate (a) part-time training and (b) increasing numbers of junior doctors.

John Hutton: When the new contract for junior doctors was introduced in 2000, additional funding (£7 million) was provided to the service to fully resource the new arrangements for both full-time and part-time trainees. This funding is recurrent. It is for the deaneries, working on behalf of strategic health authorities (SHAs), to decide how these funds are allocated between part-time and full-time trainees—local needs must be fully considered. There are no plans to increase this amount.
	This year (2004–05) additional funding has been provided to SHAs in their multi professional education and training (MPET) allocations for 134 new general practitioner registrars, 119 new specialist registrars and 203 new pre-registration house officers. The MPET budget for 2005–06 has yet to be determined, but further funding will be provided for additional GP registrars, specialist registrars and pre-registration house officers, on top of funding provided for existing trainees.

Leukaemia

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children were diagnosed with leukaemia in each of the last five years.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Keith Vaz, dated 8 November 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question concerning the number of children in the UK who were diagnosed with leukaemia in each of the last five years. (196004)
	The most recent available figures are for the year 2001. The number of newly diagnosed cases of leukaemia registered in the years 1997 to 2001 are given in the table below.
	
		Number of newly diagnosed cases of leukaemia(24) in children(25) in the UK, 1997–2001
		
			  Number of cases 
		
		
			 1997 459 
			 1998 493 
			 1999 479 
			 2000 423 
			 2001 421 
		
	
	(24) International Classification of Diseases Tenth Revision (ICD-10), codes C91-C95.
	(25) Those aged 0 to 14 years.
	Sources:
	Office for National Statistics,
	Welsh Cancer Intelligence & Surveillance Unit,
	Scottish Cancer Registry,
	Northern Ireland Cancer Registry

National Programme for IT

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken (a) to promote public awareness that patient data will be held centrally under the National Programme for IT in the NHS and (b) to ensure that patients are aware of their ability to opt out of centrally held databases in the NHS.

John Hutton: A major public awareness campaign is being planned by the national programme for information technology (NPfIT) to address the full range of issues posed by implementation of a national health service care records service (NHS CRS) and to ensure that NHS patients know their rights and how information about them can be used within the health service. This campaign will commence in 2005 and will run for a number of years. To maximise the impact of the campaign, relevant information will be made available to NHS staff and to the public record in each local health community in the months running up to the go-live date for the NHS CRS.
	The campaign will comprise written materials in various languages, web resources, and training tools and a media pack for health communities to use according to their local circumstances. It will complement communications activity in the NHS that is already required under Data Protection legislation and Departmental policy.
	A key component of the NPfIT relates to the access controls that will protect data. Patients will be able to restrict who may see different elements of the data that is held about them and may choose to opt-out of having any data shared through the new systems. The Data Protection Act 1998 also provides patients with the right to object to the processing of data that can identify them where this may cause them substantial damage or distress. The NPfIT is considering how this right should apply to implementation of the NHS CRS.

NHS Doctors (Appraisal and Revalidation)

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the costs arising from the new appraisal and revalidation processes for NHS doctors.

John Hutton: The General Medical Council (GMC) is currently in the process of consulting on proposed guidance for United Kingdom doctors undergoing revalidation, which it intend to introduce from July 2005. The implications for the national health service will depend very much on the outcome of the consultation and subsequent agreement with the GMC as to what systems we adopt for supporting NHS doctors to revalidate.
	We will aim to introduce systems which do not entail significant extra bureaucracy for the NHS, while ensuring that doctors are supported in keeping up to date and fit to practise. That is why we have linked appraisal and revalidation, by using broadly the same data for both.

NHS Trust Boards

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) men and (b) women he has appointed to NHS trust boards in the last 12 months.

Rosie Winterton: Appointments to national health service trust boards are delegated to the NHS Appointments Commission. I have asked the chair of the Commission, Sir William Wells to write to my hon. Friend with the information requested.

Operating Theatres (Fires)

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many fires there have been in operating theatres in the NHS in England in each year since 1997.

John Hutton: The numbers of reported fire incidents originating in operating departments in the national health service in England are shown in the table. A fire incident is defined as any incident where fire alarms have been activated and the fire service has attended.
	
		
			  Number of incidents 
		
		
			 1997 10 
			 1998 8 
			 1999 12 
			 2000 11 
			 2001 22 
			 2002 9 
			 2003 16 
			 2004 (26)7 
		
	
	(26) To 25 October 2004.

Overseas Nurses

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many overseas nurses have been recruited to work in the NHS during the last 12 months.

John Hutton: The information requested is not collected centrally.
	The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) registers all nurses who work in the United Kingdom and produces a statistical breakdown of its register. An analysis of the register can be found on the NMC website at www.nmc-uk.org.
	In the last 12 months 14,124 non-United Kingdom nurses were admitted to the NMC register.
	A copy of the most recent data has been placed in the Library.

Paediatric Services

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total expenditure on (a) the NHS in England and (b) NHS paediatric services in England has been in each year since 1992.

Stephen Ladyman: The data available is shown in the table.
	
		Total NHS expenditure, and expenditure on paediatric services in England 1994–95 to 2002–03 -- £ million
		
			  Total expenditure-all ages Expenditure on children (ages 0–15) excluding expenditure on maternity services 
		
		
			 2002–03 35,086.70 3,851.18 
			 2001–02 31,922.53 3,372.24 
			 2000–01 30,008.45 3,629.12 
			 1999–2000 27,463.88 3,581.63 
			 1998–99 25,759.30 3,195.86 
			 1997–98 23,583.74 2,853.23 
			 1996–97 22,679.55 2,894.46 
			 1995–96 23,578.75 3,309.84 
			 1994–95 22,237.10 2,908.36 
		
	
	Source:
	Hospital and community health services programme budget.

Patients' Complaints

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action he has taken to ensure that patients' complaints against NHS hospitals within the Greater London area are dealt with immediately; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: The National Health Service (Complaints) Regulations 2004 came into force on 30 July. They contain all the time scales for local resolution. Supporting guidance was issued at the same time. Both are available on the Department's website at http://www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/08/81/57/04088157.pdf

PFI (Greater London)

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the private finance initiative hospital building programmes under consideration for the Greater London area.

Stephen Ladyman: Information on the schemes within the five London strategic health authority areas is shown in the table.
	
		
			 NHS Trust Value (£ million) Private finance initiative/Public Financial close/tender award date 
		
		
			 Queen Mary's Hospital—Sidcup 15 PFI Open 
			 Queen Elizabeth Hospital—Greenwich 96 PFI Open 
			 Oxleas 11 PFI Open 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm 54 PFI Open 
			 North East London Mental Health 11 PFI Open 
			 East London and The City Mental Health—Newham 15 PFI Open 
			 King's College Hospital 76 PFI Open 
			 Bromley Hospitals 118 PFI Open 
			 West Middlesex University Hospital 60 PFI Open 
			 St. George's Healthcare 46 PFI Open 
			 The Whittington 32 PFI Under construction 
			 University College London Hospitals 422 PFI Under construction 
			 Brent Primary Care Trust—Willesden 21 PFI Under construction 
			 Newham Healthcare 52 PFI Under construction 
			 North West London Hospitals—Central Middlesex 69 PFI Under construction 
			 Wandsworth PCT—Queen Mary's Roehampton 75 PFI Under construction 
			 Lewisham Hospital 51 PFI Under construction 
			 Barking, Havering and Redbridge Hospitals 238 PFI Under construction 
			 Whipps Cross University Hospital 328 PFI In procurement 
			 Barts and The London 1,052 PFI In procurement 
			 Kingston Hospital 28 PFI In procurement 
			 North Middlesex University Hospital 74 PFI In procurement 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals 76 PFI Pre-procurement 
			 St. Mary's (Paddington Basin) 800 PFI Pre-procurement 
			 Total value 3,819

Pharmacists

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost of the new community pharmacy contract to pharmacists who wish to expand their practices.

Rosie Winterton: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave him on 4 November 2004, Official Report, column 398W.

Postgraduate Deaneries

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much central funding was given to postgraduate deaneries in each year since 1997.

John Hutton: Central funding for postgraduate medical and dental education and training since 1997 has been:
	
		
			  Amount (£ million) 
		
		
			 1996–97 533 
			 1997–98 592 
			 1998–99 621 
			 1999–2000 657 
			 2000–01 821 
			 2001–02 864 
			 2002–03 1,156 
			 2003–04 1,235 
			 2004–05 1,344 
		
	
	This represents an increase of 132 per cent., or £811 million. These sums formed part of the overall national health service training budgets allocated to regional health authorities and, more recently, to strategic health authorities. The amounts that postgraduate deaneries actually received will have been determined locally in the light of local priorities and national work force targets.

Radiologists

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to increase the number of clinicians performing interventional radiology.

John Hutton: Interventional radiology is the use of imaging guidance for the purpose of treating patients.
	Many clinical radiologists undertake interventional radiological procedures and most of them combine diagnosis and intervention in their practice. There is no certificate of completion of specialist training in interventional radiology, therefore the Department does not collect data on the numbers of interventional radiologists practising in the national health service.
	Since September 1997, numbers of consultants in clinical radiology have increased by 417, or 29 per cent. Consultant numbers are expected to increase further as a result of the significant investment in training capacity in this speciality.
	Between 2002–03 and 2004–05, 166 additional centrally funded specialist registrar posts have been allocated to clinical radiology. In 2005–06, there are plans in place to create up to 60 posts for the new clinical radiology academies.

Reducing Bureaucracy

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 22 July 2004, Official Report, columns 73–77WS, on reducing bureaucracy, what assessment he has made of the future role of private contractors in NHS procurement.

John Hutton: The Department's commercial directorate is scrutinising the business processes and procurement activities of many of the central services of the Department's arm's length bodies (ALBs) to establish the full scope of the efficiencies to be made, especially in relation to the money—about £3 billion—that is spent by ALBs on behalf of frontline organisations on national health service supplies, temporary staff and litigation services. This includes evaluation of the value that could be achieved by partnering with the private sector.
	The commercial directorate's work on the NHS supply chain is already well advanced, suggesting savings of approximately £500 million per annum by 2007–08.

South Dorset

Jim Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out, with statistical evidence relating as closely as possible to the South Dorset constituency, the effects of changes to departmental policy since 1997 on the South Dorset constituency.

Rosie Winterton: The Government have put in place a programme of national health service investment and reform since 1997 to improve service delivery in all parts of the United Kingdom. There is significant evidence that these policies have yielded considerable benefits for the South Dorset constituency.
	For example:
	At the end of August 2004, the number of people more than nine months for in-patient treatment within South West Dorset Primary Care Trust (PCT) has fallen to zero from 22 in June 2002.
	At the end of June 2004, the number of patients waiting over 13 weeks for out-patient treatment within the South West Dorset PCT has fallen to four from 182 in June 2002.
	In 2002, at the West Dorset General Hospitals NHS Trust, 80.4 per cent. of patients spent less than four hours in accident and emergency from arrival to admission, transfer or discharge. Figures for June 2004 show an improvement to 93.2 per cent.
	Between September 1997 and June 2004, the number of consultants at West Dorset General Hospitals NHS Trust has increased from 58 to 85. The number of nurses increased from 690 in September 1997 to 803 in September 2003.
	General practitioner figures are stable, with an increase from 112 to 115 from September 2002 to June 2004.
	Figures for September 2004 show that 100 per cent. of patients within South West Dorset PCT are able to be offered an appointment with a primary care professional within two working days.
	South West Dorset Primary Care Trust allocation has risen to £134.3 million for 2004–05, a cash increase of 9.5 per cent.
	A new catheter laboratory at West Dorset General Hospitals NHS Trust at a cost of £1.4 million, which opened on 1 October 2004.
	A redevelopment of Portland Hospital at a cost of £2 million, which will include the building of a new ward and complete renovation of existing facilities.
	Upgrade of services currently provided in Portland at a cost of approximately £2 million, including 16 general medical practitioner beds, out-patient department, physiotherapy and occupational therapy, x-ray facilities and the minor injuries unit.
	Westhaven Hospital site development, where South West Dorset has invested £800,000 as part of a £10 million development to build an innovative new complex to meet the needs of older people living in and around Weymouth. The development has been designed to meet a range of housing and care needs.

Transport

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the provision of transport for individuals needing to access hospitals some distance away, with specific reference to rural areas.

Rosie Winterton: Primary care trusts are responsible for providing or securing the provision of ambulance services, which could include patient transport services, to such extent as they consider necessary to meet all reasonable requirements. It is, therefore, for the local national health service to decide who provides transport services for patients in its area.
	Guidance has been issued to the NHS, which states that:
	" . . . patient transport service should be seen as part of an integrated programme of care. A non-emergency patient is one who, whilst requiring treatment, which may or may not be of a specialist nature, does not require an immediate or urgent response. A clinical need for treatment does not imply a medical need for transport. Medical need for non-emergency patient transport must be determined by a doctor, dentist or midwife and will depend upon the medical condition of the individual patient, the availability of private or public transport and distance to be travelled. The principle which should apply is that each patient should be able to reach hospital in a reasonable time and in reasonable comfort, without detriment to their medical condition".
	A copy of the guidance, "Ambulance and other patient transport services: Operation, use and performance standards", has been placed in the Library.

Waiting Times

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients in (a) 2003 and (b) 2004 in Hull and the East Riding waited longer than eight weeks after being referred to a cancer specialist.

Melanie Johnson: Information on the number of patients waiting longer than eight weeks after being referred to a cancer specialist is not collected by the Department. Statistics are collected on the number of patients who wait more than 28 days for a first out-patient appointment following general practitioner urgent referral with suspected cancer. For Hull and East Yorkshire hospitals national health service trust, when the referral was received within 24 hours, three patients waited more than 28 days to see a cancer specialist in 2002–03 and no patients waited longer than 28 days in 2003–04.

Waiting Times

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average change in the total in-patient/day case waiting list has been in (a) England and (b) Crosby since July 2003.

John Hutton: The table shows the average change in the total in-patient/day case waiting list since July 2003 both for England and for the two national health service trusts in the Crosby area.
	
		Patients waiting for elective in-patient—position at month end
		
			  England Aintree hospitals NHS trust Southport and Ormskirk hospital NHS trust 
			 Month end Total waiting list Percentage change Total waiting list Percentage change Total waiting list Percentage change 
		
		
			 July 2003 1,966,356 — 5,949 — 5,216 — 
			 August 2004 1,710,028 -13.0 5,239 -11.9 3,886 -25.5 
		
	
	Source:
	Department of Health monthly monitoring.

Whiplash

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have required hospital treatment for whiplash arising from a car accident in each year since 2000.

Melanie Johnson: The number of people admitted to hospital where the primary diagnosis has been sprain and strain of cervical spine and where the cause has been a transport accident since 2000 is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Number of admissions 
		
		
			 2000–01 534 
			 2001–02 474 
			 2002–03 454

Winter Plans

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether all NHS organisations in Cheshire and Merseyside have updated their winter plans.

Melanie Johnson: The emergency services action team (ESAT) was commissioned by the Cheshire and Merseyside strategic health authority to manage winter planning across the Cheshire and Merseyside area. The ESAT has collated winter plans from local health communities and assessed them against set criteria to ensure the plans are robust. Each local health community has a plan in place that aims to minimise the risk of predicted increases in demand on national health service organisations.

Working Time Directive

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of funding charges necessary to support the medical training requirements of the European working time directive.

John Hutton: holding answer 1 November 2004
	The requirement to comply with the working time directive (WTD) does not directly affect investment in medical education and training. Achieving compliance for doctors in training from August 2004 has been taken forward as part of a wider modernisation programme designed to improve both the quality of services and working patterns for doctors. We have supported this through central investment in pilot work across a number of national health service trusts over recent years. We have disseminated the lessons we learned across the NHS. We have also made more postgraduate medical training places available to help the recruitment of extra doctors.
	We assess regularly the number of training places we need for doctors and consequently the level of funding required to support them. Continuing compliance with the WTD is one of the factors that influence decisions on the future number of doctors.

DEFENCE

A400M

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on progress with the A400M procurement; and how many countries have expressed interest in purchasing the aircraft.

Adam Ingram: A contract for the development and production of the A400M aircraft was signed with Airbus Military (AM) on 27 May 2003 on behalf of the partner nations. The UK off-take is 25 aircraft out of a total 180. The contract milestones are being achieved.
	The participating nations within the programme are Germany, France, Turkey, Spain, Belgium, Luxembourg and United Kingdom. Portugal and Italy participated during the preparation stage but withdrew before MOU/Contact signature. While a number of other countries are potential customers for A400M, none of them have expressed formal interest.

Air Depth Maintenance

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the consultation period on the future locations of air depth maintenance support announced on 16 September expires.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 4 November 2004
	The Trade Union consultation period on the preferred way ahead on End-to-End Logistics Air Depth Support ended on 27 October.

Aircraft Carriers

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which US companies have been invited to bid for (a) management and (b) construction work on the project for the Royal Navy's new aircraft carriers since the appointment of BAE Systems and Thales to lead the project.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 28 October 2004
	Since the start of the Future Aircraft Carrier (CVF) Assessment Phase in 1999, and the subsequent announcement of the alliancing strategy in January 2003, both BAE Systems and Thales UK have involved a number of US companies, including Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Raytheon. As part of implementing the alliance strategy, we are currently running a competition to select the company best placed to fulfil the role of physical integrator (PI). The PI would be expected to provide a management role to co-ordinate the ship building aspects of the carriers, which will be acquired in line with the current Government policy of building warships for the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Six companies were invited to submit proposals including Bechtel and KBR, an operating segment of the Halliburton Company.

Armed Forces (Work with Children)

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence under what circumstances military personnel (a) are and (b) may in future work with children; and if the Government will ensure criminal records checks are made on members of the armed forces who interact with children.

Adam Ingram: There are a number of circumstances where military personnel, in the course of their duty, may be involved with children. In the main, but not exclusively, they are the medical services, some legal staff, welfare and families staff, Padres, cadet and youth training teams, recruitment staff, cadet instructors and administrative staff, and Service community police. In all instances Service personnel appointed to these posts undergo a criminal records check to an appropriate level of disclosure.

Armed Services (Voter Registration)

Peter Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to promote registration to vote amongst service personnel.

Ivor Caplin: The Ministry of Defence issues a Defence Council Instruction explaining the procedure for registration. Assistance is provided to personnel, especially those overseas, and personnel are notified of all parliamentary elections. We are also considering the use of other media to promote registration.

Army (Specialists)

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the Army's (a) present and (b) anticipated strength against establishment is in (i) Signals, (ii) Logistics, (iii) Engineers and (iv) Intelligence.

Ivor Caplin: The Army's strength against establishment as at 1 September 2004 in the Corps requested is set out as follows.
	
		
			 Corps Strength Establishment 
		
		
			 Royal Corps of Signals 8,850 8,630 
			 Royal Logistic Corps 15,540 16,200 
			 Corps of Royal Engineers 8,770 9,160 
			 Intelligence Corps 1,380 1,410 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. The present establishment relates to the last trained requirement published figure contained in Tri-Service Publications 3 and 4.
	2. Both sets of figures are for UK trained regular army and therefore exclude Gurkhas, Full Time Reserve Service Personnel, the Home Service Battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment and mobilised reservists. The figures also exclude those with the rank of Colonel and above who are held against "staff" strength and requirement.

Army Strength

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many infantry are (a) on operational tour, (b) training to go on operations and (c) on recreational and training tour.

Adam Ingram: There are currently (a) seven Infantry Battalions and one Infantry Company deployed on operations and; (b) seven Infantry Battalions training for operations. In answering part (c) of the question, I have assumed that the hon. Member is referring to Infantry Battalions on overseas training exercises, of which there is one. Details can be found in the following table:
	
		Infantry Battalions deployed on operations
		
			 Operation Unit 
		
		
			 Iraq 1st Battalion The Black Watch, 1st Battalion The Duke of Wellington's Regiment,  1st Battalion The Welsh Guards, 1st Battalion The Scots Guards 
			 Northern Ireland (roulement battalion) 2nd Battalion The Light Infantry 
			 Afghanistan 1st Battalion The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment 
			 Bosnia 1st Battalion The Grenadier Guards 
			 Falkland Islands 1st Battalion The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment  (Company Level Deployment) 
		
	
	Infantry Battalions training for operations
	1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
	1st Battalion The Highlanders
	1st Battalion The Staffordshire Regiment
	1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment
	1st Battalion The Coldstream Guards
	3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment
	1st Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles
	Infantry Battalions on overseas training exercises
	1st Battalion The Welsh Guards

Army Strength

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which Army personnel recommended the reduction of three battalions from two divisions.

Adam Ingram: Advice on all aspects of Army organisation, management and structure is put to Ministers by the Executive Committee of the Army Board, the senior official committee of the Army. It is chaired by the Chief of the General Staff and its membership comprises: the Second Permanent Secretary, the Commander in Chief Land Command, the Adjutant General, the General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland, the Quartermaster General, the Master General of the Ordnance.

Army Strength

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions he has consulted retired field marshals about (a) proposed changes to the Army and (b) operational matters.

Adam Ingram: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence has not consulted retired Field Marshals on either issue.

Canberra Aircraft

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many accidents there have been during the service life of the Canberra that have (a) been the direct or indirect result of training for emergency situations and (b) taken place during asymmetric approaches or landing simulating engine failure; and how many civilian casualties have occurred as a result of those training accidents.

Adam Ingram: We only hold verifiable statistical data on Canberra accident rates dating from 1974. Since then, the RAF has lost 12 Canberra aircraft in accidents, at a rate of 0.35 per 10,000 flying hours. Of these, three were attributed to training for emergency situations. Of the three losses in emergency training, all were during the take off or overshoot phase while simulating engine failure. During the same period there have been over 100 incidents involving Canberra aircraft where engines have had to be shut down during flight.
	Three civilians were killed and six injured as a result of a training accident in 1977.

Canberra Aircraft

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department is taking to provide (a) improved ejection seats and (b) a flight simulator for the (i) operational and (ii) training aircraft used for training in emergency situations for Canberra PR9s.

Adam Ingram: There are no plans to update the ejection seats or to develop flight simulator training for the Canberra. Modifications to Canberra ejection seats would take up to four years to develop and embody, exceeding the planned Canberra out of service date of 31 March 2006.

Chile (Rover Class Tanker)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with (a) the Chilean Government, (b) the Chilean navy and (c) others concerning the transfer of a Rover class tanker to Chile.

Adam Ingram: In response to an approach from the Head of the Chilean Naval Mission in London in July 2003 concerning the availability for sale of RFA Rover Class and other naval ship types, the Ministry of Defence's Disposal Services Agency (DSA) informed him that, in line with current plans, no Rover Class tankers would be decommissioned from service until later in the decade. This issue was subsequently raised by the Chilean Navy in September 2004. There have been no discussions with any other parties.

Departmental Expenditure Limit

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's cash Departmental Expenditure Limit is for the current financial year.

Adam Ingram: The Ministry of Defence has been set Departmental Expenditure Limits for Resource and Capital expenditure only. However, the Department's programme this year is expected to remain within a 'cash equivalent' (Resource DEL plus Capital DEL less anticipated depreciation and Cost of Capital costs) of £26.5 billion as set out in "Spending Review 2004, New Public Spending Plans 2005–08" (HM Treasury July 2004. Cm 6237) and, subject to any changes voted in Supplementary Estimates within the total cash figure voted by Parliament in Main Estimates (HC 466, April 2004) of £28.6 billion.

Departmental Secondments

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff in his Department and its agencies were seconded from the (a) private and (b) academic sector in each of the last three years.

Ivor Caplin: The information requested is set out in the following table:
	
		Inward secondments
		
			 Financial year Private sector Academic sector 
		
		
			 2003–04 24 1 
			 2002–03 14 0 
			 2001–02 3 0

EU Battlegroups

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 28 October 2004, Official Report, column 1367W, on EU battlegroups, who has command of a battlegroup once it has been deployed; and to whom the commander will be directly responsible.

Geoff Hoon: Any deployed EU battlegroup would have a force commander and an operation commander. The force commander would be determined on a case-by-case basis. For a battlegroup operating under the Berlin Plus arrangements, the operation commander would be DSACEUR. For a battlegroup not operating under the Berlin Plus arrangements, the operation commander would be determined on a case-by-case basis. We would expect them to be drawn from the nation or nations making the major troop contributions to the battlegroup concerned.
	As with all EU operations, the political control of a battlegroup mission, including any decisions appointing commanders, would rest with the 25 member states, acting by unanimity through the Political and Security Committee (PSC). The force commander of a deployed battlegroup would be directly responsible to the operation commander, who would be directly responsible to the PSC.

Iraq (Depleted Uranium)

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of the letter written by his Department's legal adviser to the legal secretary to the Law Officers dated 12 March 2003, in respect of the legal position on taking military action against Iraq, to which reference is made in paragraph 382, page 95, of the Butler Committee Report on intelligence on weapons of mass destruction, HC898.

Geoff Hoon: The correspondence to which paragraph 382 of the Butler Committee Report refers was considered by the Committee, and is covered by legal professional privilege. I am withholding the letter under Exemptions 2 and 4 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Military Personnel (Commonwealth)

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentages of the (a) Guards, (b) Scottish, (c) Queen's, (d) King's, (e) Prince of Wales's and (f) Light divisions are comprised of personnel from Commonwealth countries.

Ivor Caplin: The following table shows the percentages of the personnel from Commonwealth countries in (a) Guards, (b) Scottish, (c) Queens, (d) Kings, (e) Prince of Wales and (f) Light divisions. Figures relate to Regular Army trained officers and soldiers as at 1 September 2004.
	
		
			  (27)Commonwealth percentage 
		
		
			 Footguards 2.3 
			 Scots divisions 5.9 
			 Queens divisions 8.9 
			 Kings divisions 5.2 
			 Prince of Wales divisions 5.2 
			 Light divisions 7.5 
		
	
	(27) Excluding UK

Missile Defence

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written statement of 12 October 2004, Official Report, columns 9–10WS, on missile defence, what the (a) names and (b) qualifications are of the United Kingdom appointments to the (i) Executive Steering Committee and (ii) Senior Management Committee of the joint US/UK Ballistic Missile Defence programme.

Geoff Hoon: The United Kingdom is represented on the Executive Steering Committee by the Ministry of Defence's Chief Scientific Advisor, Professor Roy Anderson, whose qualifications are available on the MOD website. The name of the UK's representative on the Senior Management Committee is being withheld in accordance with Exemption 12 to the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information, as are details of their qualifications. No specific qualifications are stipulated for these appointments, which are made on the basis of the individuals' current posts, experience and technical expertise.

Missile Defence

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he expects that the United Kingdom will receive funding from the United States for arrangements provided for the facilitation of its missile defence programme; what the latest estimate is of what it would cost the United Kingdom to have the missile defence programme cover defence of the UK mainland; and if he will make a statement.

Geoff Hoon: I do not expect to receive funding for the new arrangements at RAF Fylingdales, since the United States have borne the full cost of upgrading the radar for missile defence purposes. The only other arrangements with the US in the missile defence field cover cooperative research and development programmes, for which there is no agreed budget with the US. Under the terms of the Research, Development, Test and Evaluation Annex MOU, announced to the House on 12 October, Official Report, columns 9–10WS, any such funding will be agreed on a project-by-project basis; to date there are no agreed projects. Regarding costs for the protection of the United Kingdom, the Government have taken no decisions about the need for such protection, nor the architecture and systems required. Since costs would be very dependent on these factors, as well as on the level of involvement that might be agreed with allies, it is not possible to give an estimate.

Missile Defence

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the Government have received a request in connection with the stationing of missiles as part of the United States' Missile Defence Programme; and if he will make a statement.

Geoff Hoon: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 28 October 2004, Official Report, column 1372W, to the right hon. and learned Member for North-East Fife (Sir Menzies Campbell).

Nuclear Materials Transport

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department is providing military support to the BNFL ships due to transport weapons grade plutonium from Charleston to Cherbourg; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 11 October 2004
	The Ministry of Defence did not provide support to the BNFL ships transporting plutonium from the USA to France.

Press Officers

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many press officers are employed in his Department; and how many were employed in each year since 1996–97.

Ivor Caplin: holding answer 1 November 2004
	On 2 November 2004 there were 16 press officers employed in the Ministry of Defence's central press office in London.
	The number of press officers employed by the MOD in each year since 1996–97 is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Press officers 
		
		
			 1996–97 12 
			 1997–98 12 
			 1998–99 13 
			 1999–2000 18 
			 2000–01 17 
			 2001–02 20 
			 2002–03 18 
			 2003–04 18 
		
	
	The information in the table above relates to those employed in a press officer role at any time during the financial year. Furthermore, these figures relate solely to those press officers employed in the Department's central press office in London. The information does not include those employed as press officers in Regional Press Offices, Defence Agencies, the Permanent Joint Headquarters, single Service Commands and at unit level, some of whom have a press officer task in addition to their main role. Accurate information on this is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

RAF Aldergrove

David Burnside: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what environmental impact assessment has been made of the effect on service personnel and their families at RAF Aldergrove of the proximity of asbestos storage and destruction at Crosshill Quarry, Crumlin.

Adam Ingram: None. It is the responsibility of the person making the planning application to conduct an environmental impact assessment. The Ministry of Defence has however, considered the health and safety implications of the proposed storage facility for service personnel and their families.

Ranger Stuart McMaster

Ian Paisley: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department has pressed for a criminal investigation of the circumstances of the death of Ranger Stuart McMaster at Skydive Ranch in Canada in 2002.

Adam Ingram: The death of Ranger Stuart McMaster has been investigated by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), who concluded that the circumstances of the death were not suspicious. Subsequently, the Royal Military Police Special Investigation Branch conducted additional inquiries to support HM Coroner's investigations. Should any new and substantive evidence come to light from any source, this will be considered and, if appropriate, referred back to the RCMP.

Request for Resources 1

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much of his Department's 2003–04 Request for Resources 1 underspend has been carried forward to the current financial year in (a) cash terms and (b) resource terms.

Adam Ingram: None. Approval for carry-forward will be sought in Winter Supplementary Estimates to be put to the House later this month. End Year Flexibility entitlements, based on provisional outturn figures, were published in the Public Expenditure Outturn White Paper in July 2004 (Cm 6293).

Salisbury Plain

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what management procedures are in place in the Salisbury Plain training area to restrict military training on environmental grounds in response to severe weather conditions; and how quickly the military can respond to those procedures.

Ivor Caplin: As the hon. Member will have seen during his visit on 29 October, the Army Training Estate (Salisbury Plain) takes extremely seriously its environmental responsibilities. It has well established procedures to ensure that training plans can be adjusted quickly to take account of changing conditions. These procedures are kept under constant review and are adjusted and improved where appropriate.

Second World War 60th Anniversary

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what activities his Department's plans to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War.

Ivor Caplin: I refer my hon. Friend to the announcement I made on 9 June 2004, Official Report, column 309. I shall be making a further announcement very shortly.

Soldiers (Media Contact)

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what rules apply to serving soldiers speaking to the media about deployments and other operational matters; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The general rules for service and civilian MOD personnel governing contact with the media, and for writing or speaking in public, were re-issued on 29 October 2004 as Defence Council Instruction (DCI) General 200/04.
	The key principle is that service and civilian MOD staff should only contact the media (or write or speak in public) on defence matters if they have prior authorisation. This principle is not new, and reflects previous versions of the DCI, and relevant sections of Queen's Regulations for the Armed Forces and the Civil Service Code.
	The normal channels for contact with the media are the main defence press office, subsidiary press offices and press information centres or spokespeople with deployed forces. Nonetheless, large numbers of other personnel do have contact with the media on particular occasions in approved circumstances. Joint Warfare Publication (JWP) 3–45 extends and adapts the general provisions of the DCI to cater for the needs of deployed forces.
	The rules are designed to ensure that standards of political impartiality and public accountability are maintained, and to enable appropriate support to be given to personnel.
	The substantive content of the DCI and of the JWP will be made available in the 'Publications and Reports' section of the MOD website, and copies will be placed in the Library of the House.

Zimbabwe

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much financial assistance has been granted to British war (a) veterans and (b) widows living in Zimbabwe in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available; and what plans the Government have to provide further financial assistance.

Ivor Caplin: Information is not available in the form requested. However, 40 pensions are currently in payment to former service personnel resident in Zimbabwe. We do not have readily available information for previous years or on the value of the pensions in payments and this could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Disabled veterans and the widows of veterans may be entitled to a war pension or an Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) pension if a disablement or death was caused by service. We do not have information available for the number or value of such AFPS pensions in payment. However, the information available relating to war pensions in payment to people resident in Zimbabwe is set out in the following tables.
	
		Table 1: The number of war pensions in payment with Zimbabwe as the recorded country of residence
		
			  Type of pensioner 
			 Numbers as at end of March War disablement War widow 
		
		
			 2000 90 20 
			 2001 75 20 
			 2002 60 20 
			 2003 50 20 
			 2004 40 20 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. All data have been rounded to the nearest five.
	2. Figures exclude those cases with no recorded country of residence.
	3. In each year, there were a small number (less than five) of entitled ongoing war disablement pensioners whose cases were dealt with manually rather than on the computerised payment systems. These are not included in the table.
	
		Table 2: Average weekly amount of pension entitlement for war pensioners with Zimbabwe as the recorded country of residence
		
			 Average weekly amount as at Type of pensioner 
			 end of March War disablement War widow 
		
		
			 2000 56.61 167.33 
			 2001 54.24 168.62 
			 2002 56.35 176.50 
			 2003 58.56 180.24 
			 2004 63.67 182.86 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. The average has been calculated using the mean of all weekly entitlement information for those war pensioners included in Table 1.
	2. Amounts include both the basic war disablement or war widows' pension and additional allowances.
	In addition, records show that 18 payments of £10,000 each have been made under the Far East Prisoner of War and Civilian Internee Ex Gratia Payment Scheme to ex-servicemen or to the widows of servicemen living in Zimbabwe.

Upholder Class Submarines

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the Upholder Class submarines were sold to Canada with a warranty; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not provide a warranty to Canada for the design and build of the Upholder Class submarines and neither does it provide a warranty for any equipment on board the submarine. The MOD has, however, undertaken to exercise on Canada's behalf right granted to it under any third party arrangement, such as the guarantee on the work by BAE Systems under contract to the MOD.

Upholder Class Submarines

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether HMCS Chicoutimi was manned by a Canadian crew during its sea trials prior to handover; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: During sea trials, HMCS Chicoutimi, formerly HMS Upholder, was manned by a Canadian crew under the command of a Royal Navy Commanding Officer. At handover and acceptance the Canadian Commanding Officer designate assumed command.